February 17, 2025

ABC7
— Trump mug shot hung just outside Oval Office
https://abc7chicago.com/post/president-donald-trumps-mug-shot-fulton-county-jail-georgia-hung-outside-oval-office-photos-show/15916528/
— Trump tours Boeing plane to highlight aircraft maker’s delay in delivering a new Air Force One
https://abc7chicago.com/post/donald-trump-tours-boeing-747-plane-highlight-aircraft-makers-delay-delivering-new-air-force-presidential/15915490/
— Fired federal workers speak out on recent terminations: ‘we’re under attack by billionaires’ (COMMENT: I did more than speak out when my Democrat GAO superiors forced me to retire when I was 49 years old in 1997. I filed Diersen v. GAO. SEE: https://gopillinois.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/DiersenGAOFifthAmendedComplaint.pdf  My critics/opponents side with GAO in that lawsuit, that is, they promote political affiliation discrimination, reverse discrimination, and age discrimination.)
https://abc7chicago.com/post/federal-layoffs-fired-workers-speak-recent-terminations-were-attack-billionaires/15915591/


WTTW
— An Illinois DOGE?
Rep. John Cabello’s (R-Rockford) Proposal Would Create New Department
https://news.wttw.com/2025/02/17/illinois-doge-republican-state-lawmaker-s-proposal-would-create-new-department

WBBM
— LaHood trusts Trump’s implementation of the Republican Party platform. To what extent do the Republican leaders in your county, township, municipality, and school district share LaHood’s trust? Which planks in the Republican Party platform do the aforesaid leaders accept or reject?
https://www.audacy.com/wbbm780/news/local/congressman-lahood-trusts-trump-administration-musk

CHICAGO TRIBUNE
— FRONT PAGE TOP OF FOLD: Democrats ever-increasingly promote more abortion.
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/02/17/cook-county-health-planned-parenthood-partnership-englewood/
— Trump’s moves to end foreign aid agency hit close to home in Illinois
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/02/17/ctc-l-trump-usaid-spending-illinois/

CHICAGO SUN-TIMES
— ALL OF THE FRONT PAGE: Chicago area federal workers on edge as Trump guts agencies: ‘It’s devastating’  More than 48,000 federal workers in and around Chicago have been on edge for weeks as President Donald Trump aims to drastically reduce the federal workforce. (COMMENT: Virtually all federal employees are Democrats. If I was still a federal employee, my Democrat superiors, supervisors, coworkers, and subordinates would have killed me by now figuratively if not literally. When Republicans gutted GAO in the 1990s, my Democrat GAO superiors forced me to retire when I was 49 years old.)
https://chicago.suntimes.com/politics/donald-trump/2025/02/16/federal-workers-chicago-trump-buyouts-layoffs
— Democrat and RINO leaders ever-increasingly promote more illegal immigration.
https://chicago.suntimes.com/la-voz/work-permit-immigration-eligibility-chicago

DAILY HERALD
— As federal workers and aid recipients reel, Trump’s team is unmoved (COMMENT: I reeled big time when my Democrat GAO superiors forced me to retire in 1997 when I was 49 years old. I filed Diersen v. GAO. SEE: https://gopillinois.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/DiersenGAOFifthAmendedComplaint.pdf )
https://www.dailyherald.com/20250215/nation-and-world-politics/as-federal-workers-and-aid-recipients-reel-trumps-team-is-unmoved/
— Illinois leaders: Stop pushing for big government, start helping small businesses
https://www.dailyherald.com/20250215/business/illinois-leaders-stop-pushing-for-big-government-start-helping-small-businesses/

CHAMPAIGN/URBANA NEWS GAZETTE
— Daytona 500 resumes after lengthy rain delay; Trump on hand for start of NASCAR’s biggest race. The Daytona 500 has resumed after two weather delay totaling more than 3 1/2 hours, and with President Donald Trump set to watch the rest of the race in Florida, after he earlier led drivers on two laps around the track in his heavily armored presidential limousine known in Washington as “The Beast.”
https://www.news-gazette.com/news/nation-world/daytona-500-resumes-after-lengthy-rain-delay-trump-on-hand-for-start-of-nascars-biggest/article_cbec048e-62f3-5f04-b0d8-22239f18aa2e.html

ALTON TELEGRAPH
— Trump administration wants the Supreme Court to let the firing of whistleblower agency head proceed (COMMEMT: I was a whistleblower. I ever-increasingly blew the whistle on political affiliation discrimination, reverse discrimination, and age discrimination in the federal government. The Bush administration wanted me to suffer the retaliation that I did for my doing that.)
https://www.thetelegraph.com/news/article/trump-administration-wants-the-supreme-court-to-20170946.php

NPR ILLINOIS
— Democrat leaders ever-increasingly promote more protests against Trump.
https://www.nprillinois.org/2025-02-16/protests-are-set-to-take-place-on-presidents-day-heres-why

WCIA
— Presidents dominate their DOJs. My critics/opponents stress that while Bush was president, his DOJ sided with the Democrats against me in Diersen v. GAO, that is, that Bush wanted political affiliation discrimination, reverse discrimination, and age discrimination.
https://www.wcia.com/news/politics/ap-politics/ap-justice-departments-independence-is-threatened-as-trumps-team-asserts-power-over-cases-and-staff/

WAND TV
— Trump attends the Daytona 500 and says the spirit of NASCAR will ‘fuel America’s Golden Age’  President Donald Trump says the spirit of NASCAR will “fuel America’s Golden Age.”
https://www.wandtv.com/news/national/trump-attends-the-daytona-500-and-says-the-spirit-of-nascar-will-fuel-americas-golden/article_68c448c7-3894-5da3-ab9c-45a47a8dabd3.html
— Local federal employees in Illinois among those who’ve been fired nationally  (COMMENT: During the 1980s and 1990s, I was among those Republican GAO employees who the Democrats who ran GAO punished for Republican-led budget cuts. They forced me to retire when I was 49 years old in 1997 because of Republican-led budget cuts.)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l8_KiZcXA1Q

FOX ILLINOIS
— Rubio backs Israel’s Gaza strategy as ceasefire faces uncertainty amid Hamas tensions
https://foxillinois.com/news/nation-world/rubio-in-israel-says-hamas-must-be-eradicated-casting-further-doubt-on-gazas-shaky-cease

FROM ILLINOIS CENTER-RIGHT SOURCES

GOPUSA ILLINOIS
— What if the federal government had to look like America? It certainly does not now. Virtually all federal employees are Democrats. But Republican Trump got 50% of the vote. What if 50% of federal employee had to be Republican? The Democrats who ran GAO in 1980, IRS in 1971, and the Post Office in 1966 hired me because they could not find a qualified Democrat, minority, female, younger person, or veteran who would take the job. Because I am a Republican, the Democrats who ran IRS would not have promoted me in 1972, 1973, or 1974 if I had not been taking graduate evening business courses. Virtually none of my coworkers had done that. Because I am a Republican, the Democrats who ran GAO would not have promoted me in 1986 if I had not earned an MBA in 1976, passed the CPA examination on my first attempt in 1979, earned a master’s degree in accounting in 1980, and passed the Certified Internal Auditor examination on my first attempt and became a licensed CPA in 1981. None of my coworkers had done anything close to that. – Dave Diersen
http://www.gopillinois.com
— What discourages Republicans from seeking federal jobs? Virtually all federal employees are Democrats. Democrat superiors and supervisors in the federal government give preference to their employees who are Democrat, and especially to those who are minority, female, younger, and/or veteran, that is, they discriminate against their employees who are Republican, and especially against those who are White, male, older, and/or non-veteran. What could Trump do about the aforesaid? He could use me as an example. If I had been a Democrat, the federal government would have promoted me into its Senior Executive Service before I was 40 years old. But because I was a Republican, the federal government wasted my career and forced me to retire when I was 49 years old in 1997 even though I had a) earned job-related master’s degrees in 1976, 1980, and 1997, b) earned job-related professional certifications in 1979, 1981, 1990, 1994, 1996, and 1997, and c) earned a job-related professional license in 1981. Trump could force the return of meritocracy in the federal government. All my coworkers who my Democrat superiors promoted over me were Democrats who a) had less work experience than I had, had less education than I had, had no professional certifications or fewer than I had, and/or had no professional license like the one I had and/or b) were minority, female, younger, and/or veteran. – Dave Diersen
http://www.gopillinois.com

WIREPOINTS
— Illinois shouldn’t dismiss Indiana’s overture to snap up “separatist” downstate counties
https://wirepoints.org/illinois-shouldnt-dismiss-indianas-overture-to-snap-up-separatist-downstate-counties-wirepoints/

JOHN BIVER
— USAID, DOGE and the state of Illinois 2025
https://johnbiver.com/usaid-doge-and-the-state-of-illinois-2025/

MCHENRY COUNTY BLOG
— Is McHenry County Administrator’s Pending 5.3% Raise a Signal That All Non-Union Employees Will Receive the Same?
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2025/02/16/is-mchenry-county-administrators-pending-5-3-raise-a-signal-that-all-non-union-employees-will-receive-the-same/
— Inside View of State Senate Appointment Process in Which Darby Hills Selected to Replace Dan McConchie
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2025/02/16/inside-view-of-state-senate-appointment-process-in-which-darby-hills-selected-to-replace-dan-mcconchie/
— Ness Attacked on Facebook by Americans for Prosperity
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2025/02/15/ness-attacked-on-facebook-by-americans-for-prosperity/
— Mike Buehler’s 2025 State of the County Address
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2025/02/15/mike-buehlers-state-of-the-county-address/
— Trump as a “Disruptor”
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2025/02/15/trump-as-a-disruptor/
— Kane County GOP Campaigns Against Democrats’ Sales Tax Hike Referendum
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2025/02/15/kane-county-gop-campaigns-against-democrats-sales-tax-hike-referendum/
— Schakowsky Wonders if MANufacturers Discriminate against Women
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2025/02/15/schakowsky-wonders-if-manufacturers-discriminate-against-women/
— Crystal Lake Grade School Offers Mental Health/Suicide Prevention Advice
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2025/02/15/crystal-lake-grade-school-offers-mental-health-suicide-prevention-advice/
— Keicher Takes on TIFs
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2025/02/15/keicher-takes-on-tifs/

FROM NATIONAL CENTER-RIGHT SOURCES

WASHINGTON TIMES
— Democrats hunt for Trump vulnerability, zero in on inflation
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2025/feb/16/democrats-looking-trump-vulnerability-zero-inflati/
— Trump’s record-breaking start rattles Washington, rankles rivals, but earns raves from voters
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2025/feb/16/trump-record-breaking-start-rattles-district-rankl/
— Time for ‘Never Trumpers’ to admit they were wrong about Donald Trump
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2025/feb/16/time-never-trumpers-admit-wrong-donald-trump/
— Trump moves to counter hatred of Christians and Jews. Left claims it doesn’t exist. (COMMENT: I was baptized, raised, and confirmed as a Missouri Synod Lutheran. While was a federal employee for almost 30 years, virtually none of my superiors, supervisors, coworkers, and subordinates were Protestants.)
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2025/feb/16/trump-moves-counter-hatred-christians-jews/
— Dems fighting Trump’s cuts represent states receiving $231 billion in federal funds
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2025/feb/15/dem-task-force-stop-trump-bureaucracy-overhaul-rep/

NEW YORK POST
— Trump attends Daytona 500, drives lap around track in motorcade while delivering message
https://nypost.com/2025/02/16/sports/trump-attends-daytona-500-drives-lap-around-track-in-motorcade/

AMERICAN CONSERVATIVE
— Mass Deportations Are an American Tradition. Past presidents showed that removing millions of illegal aliens is achievable.
https://www.theamericanconservative.com/mass-deportations-are-an-american-tradition/

AMERICAN GREATNESS
— Trump Speed. President Trump is not moving at light speed. He’s not moving at warp speed. He is moving even faster… he is moving at Trump speed. And the left doesn’t know what to do.
https://amgreatness.com/2025/02/17/trump-speed/

AMERICAN THINKER
— Trump is Closing the Border. Now What About Legal Immigration?
https://www.americanthinker.com/articles/2025/02/trump_is_closing_the_border_now_what_about_legal_immigration.html

BREITBART
— House Republicans Budget Billions for Trump Border and Immigration Enforcement
https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2025/02/17/budget/
— Trump’s Deputies Shrink Democrats’ Labor and Sex Trafficking Programs
https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2025/02/16/trumps-deputies-shrink-federal-labor-sex-trafficking-uac-program/

DAILY CALLER
— Reince Priebus Tells Dem Panelists Their Party Is On ‘Wrong Side Of Normal’
https://dailycaller.com/2025/02/16/reince-priebus-democrats-wrong-normal-party-abc-news/

FOX NEWS
— Sanctuary policies protect criminal illegal aliens
https://www.foxnews.com/video/6368926559112
— Sanctuary cities are illegal and unconstitutional
https://www.foxnews.com/video/6368939017112
— Mayors, local officials could face arrest if they don’t comply with Trump’s mass deportations (COMMENT: Are the leaders of your county, township, municipality, and school district obstructing or helping with deportation of illegals?)
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/mayors-local-officials-could-face-arrest-if-they-don-t-comply-with-trump-s-mass-deportations/ar-AA1xJrhA
— Trump applauds ‘guts’ of NASCAR drivers ahead of Daytona 500, sends them special message. Trump took a lap in The Beast ahead of the start of the race.
https://www.foxnews.com/sports/trump-applauds-guts-nascar-drivers-ahead-daytona-500-sends-them-special-message?lid=5eki2yd47qmi
— Trump admin aims for killing blow to independence of ‘Deep State’ agencies (COMMENT: After I transferred from IRS to GAO when I was 31 years old in 1980, I soon learned that GAO was much more partisan, that is, anti-Republican, than IRS was.)
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/donald-trump-supreme-court-independent-agencies-deep-state-justice-department-dick-durbin

REAL CLEAR POLICY
— Trump’s Opening Move Against Migrant Sex Trafficking
https://www.realclearpolicy.com/2025/02/17/trumps_opening_move_against_migrant_sex_trafficking_1091841.html

FROM NATIONAL CENTER-LEFT SOURCES

THE HILL
— Trump’s plan is to implement the Republican Party platform.
https://thehill.com/opinion/white-house/5146280-trump-executive-orders-government-efficiency/

CBS NEWS
— Trump administration wants Supreme Court to permit firing of whistleblower agency head (COMMENT: I was a whistleblower. I ever-increasingly blew the whistle on political affiliation discrimination, reverse discrimination, and age discrimination in the federal government. Because of that, my Democrat GAO superiors forced me to retire when I was 49 years old in 1997. Because of that, I filed Diersen v. GAO. SEE: https://gopillinois.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/DiersenGAOFifthAmendedComplaint.pdf  But Bush sided with my Democrat GAO superiors in that lawsuit. My critics/opponents have always stressed that. My critics/opponents promote political affiliation discrimination, reverse discrimination, and age discrimination.)
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/trump-administration-supreme-court-permit-firing-whistleblower-agency-head/

NEW YORK TIMES
— First Test of Trump’s Power to Fire Officials Reaches Supreme Court. The court’s conservative majority may be receptive to the argument that presidents have unlimited power to remove leaders of independent agencies.
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/02/16/us/trump-supreme-court-special-counsel.html
— Democrats say “Trump Targets an Ideal Born of a President’s Murder. The act of violence almost 150 years ago effectively gave birth to the civil service, that class of nonpartisan experts who cannot be hired or fired for political reasons.” (COMMENT: Constructively, the Democrats who run the federal government have abolished Civil Service protections for federal employees who are Republican, and especially for those who are White, male, older, non-veteran, Protestant, German American, and/or have ancestors who have been in America for a long time. I should write a book about the aforesaid.)
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/02/13/us/politics/trump-civil-service-history.html

USA TODAY
— ‘It’s a lie’: Federal workers incensed by performance language in termination letters (COMMENT: My critics/opponents have always hinted/implied/argued/shouted that real reason why my Democrat superiors in the federal government wasted my career and forced me to retire when I was 49 years old in 1997 was performance problems. They ignore/dismiss/belittle/badmouth a) my earning job-related master’s degrees in 1997, 1980, and 1976, b) my earning job-related professional certifications in 1997, 1996, 1994, 1990, 1981, and 1979, and c) my earning a job-related professional license in 1981.)
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2025/02/17/fired-federal-workers-performance-language-doge/78886104007/

BOSTON HERALD
— Trump’s Department of Education gives schools 2 weeks to ditch DEI…or else
https://www.bostonherald.com/2025/02/17/trumps-department-of-education-gives-schools-2-weeks-to-ditch-dei-or-else/

BALTIMORE SUN
— America is in the midst of a rightward shift (COMENT: Are the leaders of the Illinois Republican Party and your Republican county and township/ward party organizations shifting to the right?)
https://www.baltimoresun.com/2025/02/17/america-is-in-the-midst-of-a-rightward-shift-editorial/

ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
— With 1.4 million undocumented people, Southern California will change as deportations ramp up (COMMENT: How many illegals are there in your county, township, municipality, school district, and precinct?)
https://www.ocregister.com/2025/02/16/with-1-4-million-undocumented-people-southern-california-will-change-as-deportations-ramp-up/

T. ROWE PRICE
— You’re age 35, 50, or 60: How much should you have saved for retirement by now?  It’s important to make steady progress toward saving for retirement, no matter what your age. (COMMENT: Saving for our retirement was always a priority for my wife and I. While we were both working, we spent money like only one of us had a paycheck. We always put the maximums into tax-deferred accounts. Our retirement savings are much greater because we gave up trying to have children. Sadly, my critics/opponents use the aforesaid against me. We have less retirement savings because my Democrat superiors in the federal government wasted my career and forced me to retire when I was 49 years old in 1997. We have more money because of inheritances.)
https://www.troweprice.com/personal-investing/resources/insights/youre-age-35-50-or-60-how-much-should-you-have-by-now.html

ATLANTIC
— The Coming Democratic Baby Bust. Birth rates on the left fell in the last Trump presidency. It seems likely to happen again.
https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2025/02/democrat-baby-bust-trump-population-decline/681619/

NARFE
— Musk’s Meddling in Government Operations: A Threat to Federal Employees and National Security
https://www.narfe.org/blog/2025/02/11/elon-musks-meddling-in-government-operations-a-threat-to-federal-employees-and-national-security/
— The Importance of Smart-Sizing Federal Agencies (COMMENT: If Gingrich had reformed GAO instead of gutting it in the1980s and 1990s, there would be no need for DOGE today.)
https://www.narfe.org/blog/2025/02/11/the-importance-of-smart-sizing-federal-agencies-a-letter-from-narfe/
— Emerging Threats to the Federal Community
https://www.narfe.org/advocacy/emerging-threats/

SOUTH AFRICAN
— According to Democrat and RINO leaders, all the citizens of all the countries in the world are qualified to seek asylum in America, and especially those who are marginalized/oppressed, that is, those who are minority, female, younger, LGBTQ, poor, disabled, non-Protestant, non-German American, lack education and/or job skills, boozers, gamblers, stoners, criminals, etc.
https://www.thesouthafrican.com/lifestyle/confusion-qualifies-us-asylum-in-2025/

February 14, 2025

FROM ILLINOIS CENTER-LEFT SOURCES

ABC7
— Trump administration begins mass layoffs across multiple federal agencies (COMMENT: While I worked for the Democrats who ran GAO 1980-1997, the agency ever-increasingly shrank because of Republican-led budget cuts. My Democrat GAO superiors ever-increasingly punished me for that. I was one of the last Republicans who GAO hired. GAO audits IRS. The Democrats who ran GAO in 1980 let me transfer from IRS when I was 31 years old, but only if I took a $23,472/year (21%) pay cut in today’s dollars. They could not find a qualified Democrat, minority, female, younger person, or veteran who would take the job. My qualifications included having a) passed the CPA examination on my first attempt in 1979, b) almost completed the requirements for a master’s degree in accounting from DePaul, c) earned an MBA from Loyola in 1976, and d) worked for IRS for almost 9 years, the last 5 1/2 years of which at the GS-12 Step 1-5 Levels, currently $99,069-$112,280/year. To further punish me for Republican-led budget cuts, my Democrat GAO superiors a) delayed my promotions and never promoted me beyond GS-13, kept me off audits of IRS for all but 3 of the almost 18 years that I worked for GAO, always ranked me in the bottom half of my coworkers for pay-for-performance purposes, and forced me to retire when I was 49 years old in 1997.)
https://abc7chicago.com/post/trump-administration-begins-mass-layoffs-multiple-federal-agencies-sources/15903559/

NBC5
— Local businesses concerned about DEI rollbacks as Illinois AG releases guidance (COMMENT: Democrat and RINO employers use DEI a) to not hire Republicans and b) to get rid of their Republican employees.)
https://www.nbcchicago.com/top-videos-home/local-businesses-concerned-about-dei-rollbacks-as-illinois-ag-releases-guidance/3674153/

FOX32
— Trump’s Illinois approval rating: New poll sheds light on president’s favorability (COMMENT: How strongly do the following approve of Trump: a) the leaders of the Illinois Republican Party and your Republican county, township, and ward party organizations, b) the Republican leaders of your county, township, municipality, and school district, c) the Republican candidates on the April 1 ballot in your precinct, and d) your Republican Precinct Committeeman?)
https://www.fox32chicago.com/news/trump-illinois-approval-rating-new-poll
(FROM THE ARTICLE: President Donald Trump’s approval rating in Illinois stands at 45%, slightly higher than his election day numbers. Trump’s support grew in suburban Cook County and the collar counties but remained steady in Chicago. The poll highlights a gender gap and varied opinions on Trump’s early policy moves.)
— Durbin slams RFK Jr. as ‘unqualified, unfit, and dangerous’ after health secretary confirmation
https://www.fox32chicago.com/news/illinois-senator-slams-rfk-jr-unqualified-unfit-dangerous-health-secretary

CHICAGO TRIBUNE
— Brandon Johnson, brooking no diversity of opinion, summons his inner Donald Trump. Chicago’s mayor is taking precisely the wrong lessons from his administrative failures
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/02/14/editorial-brandon-johnson-donald-trump-loyalty/
— Democrats ever-increasingly use DEI to get rid of Republicans
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/02/14/opinion-dei-trump-administration-free-speech/
— Reader: Illinois should follow President Donald Trump’s example and cut the waste (COMMENT: Democrats and RINOs oppose cutting government waste because Democrats and RINOs benefit from government waste. Democrats and RINOs do not want Republicans like me to fight government waste. GAO fights government waste. I would not have survived as a GAO Analyst for almost 18 years 1980-1997 if I had not a) earned master’s degrees in business in 1976, in accounting in 1980, and in finance in 1997, b) passed on my first attempt the CPA examination in 1979 and the Certified Internal Auditor examination in 1981, c) became a licensed CPA in 1981, d) became a Certified Fraud Examiner in 1990, Government Financial Manager in 1994, Financial Services Auditor in 1996, and Forensic Accountant in 1997, and e) worked for IRS for almost 9 years 1971-1980, the last 5 1/2 years of which at the GS-12 Step 1-5 Levels, currently $99,069-$112,280/year.)
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/02/13/letters-021325/
— Mayor Johnson’s public food market idea leaves us hungry for details
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/02/13/editorial-mayor-johnsons-public-market-idea-leaves-us-hungry-for-details/
— What to know about the federal workforce under President Trump (COMMENT: GAO did not unionize until 2007. If GAO had been unionized in 1997, I might still be a GAO employee.)
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/02/13/president-trump-federal-workforce-explainer/
(FROM THE ARTICLE: The civilian federal workforce, not including military personnel and postal workers, comprises about 2.4 million people. While a chunk of federal workers, about 20%, are in Washington, D.C., and the neighboring states of Maryland and Virginia, more than 80% are distributed outside the region. . .Civil servants are the vast majority of federal workers. They’re generally hired through an application process and have strong protections once in their positions. Political appointees, who number roughly 4,000, serve at the discretion of the president and can be dismissed at will by the chief executive. . .“Civil servants tend to be in their jobs as careers, some of them for decades,” said Elaine Kamarck, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution who worked in President Bill Clinton’s Democratic administration when about 426,000 federal jobs were cut over more than eight years in a deliberative effort aimed at reinventing government. . .It’s not easy to fire the vast majority of federal workers — they have considerable job security with a long legal history. Federal employees who are not political appointees have strong protections designed to prevent political whims from clearing out the workforce. The protections have grown over time, under leadership of both major political parties. “The president definitely has his work cut out for him,” said Donald Kettl, a professor emeritus and former dean of the University of Maryland School of Public Policy. Federal workers are entitled to due process, which means they can challenge disciplinary actions through a formal process. They have to be notified of the allegations against them and allowed to respond and present their side. “You have to build a record to fire somebody, and that doesn’t often happen,” Kamarck said. . .Federal workers have union representation, but, unlike those of many industries, they do not have the power to strike. Federal workers also can’t bargain over pay, because salaries are set in law. Federal unions can bargain over working conditions and basic protections for their members. Recently, unions have battled over remote working conditions, which they’ve successfully bargained for in the past and Trump is working to sharply reduce. “There also are some limits about what they can bargain over, so, for example, they can’t bargain over what the policy of their agency is,” Super said. “That’s a matter for the political process to work out, but they can bargain for things that affect workers on their jobs and their well-being.”)
— Trump administration begins sweeping layoffs with probationary workers, warns of larger cuts to come (COMMENT: My Democrat GAO superiors and supervisors were furious that they could not use probationary employee procedures to get rid of me because I had already survived my probationary period when I worked for IRS.)
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/02/13/trump-administration-lays-off-probationary-workers/

CHICAGO SUN-TIMES
— Trump, pensions, health care among pressure points as Gov. JB Pritzker crafts state budget. Uncertainty in federal funding under President Donald Trump’s administration has made a tough state budget season even more difficult for Gov. JB Pritzker and Illinois Democrats who control Springfield.
https://chicago.suntimes.com/springfield/2025/02/14/jb-pritzker-budget-proposal-donald-trump
— Aviation, COPA chiefs out after Johnson vows to purge disloyal staff (COMMENT: My critics/opponents demand blind loyalty and destroy those like me who they cannot manipulate or dominate, who refuse to glorify and praise them, who refuse to pander to them, who refuse to serve as one of their operatives or dupes, who refuse to coverup their wrongdoing, and/or who refuse to give them money.)
https://chicago.suntimes.com/city-hall/2025/02/13/aviation-commissioner-retiring-jamie-rhee-ohare-midway-mayor-brandon-johnson-clean-house

DAILY HERALD
— EDITORIAL: Removing Henry Hyde’s name from Wheaton courthouse feels petty. Because it is.
https://www.dailyherald.com/20250213/editorials/daily-herald-opinion-removing-henry-hydes-name-from-wheaton-courthouse-feels-petty-because-it-is/
— Elgin moves to ban sale of THC products (COMMENT: Money spent on THC products, booze, gambling, prostitution, and other vices is money not spent on pot.)
https://www.dailyherald.com/20250213/news/elgin-moves-to-ban-sale-of-thc-products/
— FRONT PAGE TOP OF FOLD WITH BIG PICTURE: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly use illegals and students to promote more hatred against Trump.
https://www.dailyherald.com/20250213/news/this-is-a-safe-environment-amid-fears-of-deportation-sweeps-schools-work-to-protect-students/

CARROLL COUNTY NEWS
— Early voting begins for April 1 election (COMMENT: What offices are on the April 1 ballot in your precinct? Who are the candidates? Which ones are Republican?)
https://www.mycarrollcountynews.com/news/article_b1cc4bac-ea21-11ef-a282-2ff1c3444292.html

CENTRAL ILLINOIS PROUD
— The more demographics that voters have who vote for Republicans, the more that Democrats and RINOs discriminate against those voters. Demographics that vote for Republicans include: conservative, White, male, older, Protestant, German American, and have ancestors who have been in America for a long time.
https://www.centralillinoisproud.com/news/politics/ap-given-christianitys-dominance-in-us-trump-raises-eyebrows-with-anti-christian-bias-initiative/

NPR ILLINOIS
— Trump administration was set to purchase $400 million worth of armored Teslas
https://www.nprillinois.org/2025-02-12/trump-administration-was-set-to-purchase-400-million-worth-of-armored-teslas
— Trump hired Musk as a special federal employee. Here is what that means. (COMMENT: I was just a regular federal employee. But notwithstanding tremendous efforts by my Democrat superiors to waste my career and to get rid of me, I survived for almost 18 years and got promoted to GS-13 Step 10, currently $153,151 year.)
https://www.nprillinois.org/2025-02-13/trump-hired-musk-as-a-special-government-employee-heres-what-that-means
— Under the Democrats and under the RINOs, homelessness will ever-increasingly increase.
https://www.nprillinois.org/illinois/2025-02-13/statewide-counting-the-unhoused
— A federal worker tried to take Trump’s ‘Fork’ resignation offer. Here’s what happened
https://www.nprillinois.org/2025-02-14/a-federal-worker-tried-to-take-trumps-fork-resignation-offer-heres-what-happened
— Immigration poll shows growing support for restrictions, but deep divisions remain (COMMENT: Democrats want immigrants because immigrants vote for Democrats. RINOs want immigrants because RINOs want cheap labor.)
https://www.nprillinois.org/2025-02-14/immigration-poll-shows-growing-support-for-restrictions-but-deep-divisions-remain

NPR ILLINOIS & WEEK
— As Chicago strengthens immigrant protections, downstate officials split on sanctuary laws (COMMENT: Ever-increasingly, according to Democrat leaders, those who are the following are discriminated against by Republicans and protected by Democrats: liberal/moderate, minority, female, younger, unmarried, LGBTQ, non-rich, non-Protestant, non-German American, have ancestors who have not been in America for a long time, in America illegally, boozers, gamblers, stoners, criminals, etc.)
https://www.nprillinois.org/illinois/2025-02-13/as-chicago-strengthens-immigrant-protections-downstate-officials-split-on-sanctuary-laws
https://www.25newsnow.com/2025/02/13/chicago-strengthens-immigrant-protections-downstate-officials-split-sanctuary-laws/

WAND TV
— Attorney General Raoul joins coalition proving DEI guidance for businesses (COMMENT: To promote DEI is to promote discrimination.)
https://www.wandtv.com/news/attorney-general-raoul-joins-coalition-proving-guidance-for-businesses-on-diversity-and-inclusion/article_7d3937ce-ea3f-11ef-8955-0341fccb6b8c.html

RUSS STEWART
— DEMOCRATS BESEECH SEN. DURBIN: TIME TO STEP ASIDE IN 2026
http://www.russstewart.com/articles/2025/01-29-25.html

CAPITOL FAX
— Morning briefing
https://capitolfax.com/2025/02/14/isabel%e2%80%99s-morning-briefing-456/
— Afternoon roundup
https://capitolfax.com/2025/02/13/isabel%e2%80%99s-afternoon-roundup-248/

FROM ILLINOIS CENTER-RIGHT SOURCES

GOPUSA ILLINOIS
— Ever-increasing, when push comes to shove, Democrats and RINOs make it clear that they are anti-conservative, anti-Republican, anti-American, anti-White, anti-male, anti-older people, anti-Protestant, anti-German American, and/or anti-those whose ancestors have been in America longer than their ancestors. – Dave Diersen
http://www.gopillinois.com

WIREPOINTS
— Chicago Public Schools is so corrupted, both morally and financially, that it begs for an intervention like DOGE
https://wirepoints.org/chicago-public-schools-is-so-corrupted-both-morally-and-financially-that-it-begs-for-an-intervention-like-doge-wirepoints-on-wls-ramblin-ray-show/

MCHENRY COUNTY BLOG
— Illinois State Corporate Tax Rate Second Highest in the Nation, How the Personal Property Tax Made It So and How It Could Have Been (and Still Could Be) Different?
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2025/02/13/illinois-state-corporate-tax-rate-second-highest-in-the-nation-how-the-personal-property-tax-made-it-so-and-how-it-could-have-been-and-still-could-be-different/
— Crystal Lake Grade School District Follows Cary’s Lead on Possible Contacts with ICE
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2025/02/13/crystal-lake-grade-school-district-follows-carys-lead-on-possible-contacts-with-ice/
— DuPage Appearance of Lara Trump Sponsored by McHenry County GOPAC
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2025/02/13/dupage-appearance-of-lara-trump-sponsored-by-mchenry-county-gopac/
— Movie Tentatively Titled “The Lottery” Being Shot in McHenry County
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2025/02/13/movie-tentatively-titled-the-lottery-being-shot-in-mchenry-county/
— Reick Explains Attack on Home Schooling, Plus Private Schools
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2025/02/13/reick-explains-attack-on-home-schooling-plus-private-schools/
— Salvi Name Still Potent in Northwest Suburbs, But Joe Salvi No Longer Seeking the Senate Appointment
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2025/02/13/salvi-name-still-potent-in-northwest-suburbs/
— Madigan Loses $13,170 Monthly Pension
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2025/02/13/madigan-loses-13170-monthly-pension/
— Three McHenry County Nursing Homes Fined by Illinois Public Health Department
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2025/02/13/three-mchenry-county-nursing-homes-fined-by-illinois-public-health-department/
— Chinese Companies Indicted for Trade Secret Theft from Aurora Company
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2025/02/13/chinese-companies-indicted-for-trade-secret-theft-from-aurora/
— $1.5 Million Food Stamp, that is, SNAP Fraud
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2025/02/13/1-5-million-food-stamp-that-is-snap-fraud/

FROM NATIONAL CENTER-RIGHT SOURCES

WASHINGTON TIMES
— Trump’s spending pause exposes extreme reach of federal government. Uncle Sam pays for up to 40% of states’ expenses. (COMMENT: To what extent are those in the following dependent on government spending: your county, your township, your municipality, your school district, and your precinct?)
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2025/feb/13/trump-spending-pause-exposes-extreme-reach-federal/

NEW YOR POST
— AOC shares tips on how illegal immigrants can evade ICE: ‘Do not open your door’
https://nypost.com/2025/02/13/us-news/aoc-shares-tips-on-how-illegal-immigrants-can-evade-ice-do-not-open-your-door/

BREITBART
— Former GAO Head David Walker: What DOGE Is Doing ‘Needs to Be Done,’ But Needs More Transparency (COMMENT: Who does Trump want the next head of GAO to be? Walker headed GAO 1998-2008. Walker could have, but he did not a) rescind GAO’s forcing me to retire in 1997 or b) settle Diersen v. GAO. Therefore, Walker further promoted patronage, political affiliation, reverse discrimination, age discrimination, religious discrimination, and national origin discrimination in GAO.)
https://www.breitbart.com/clips/2025/02/12/fmr-gao-head-what-doge-is-doing-needs-to-be-done-but-needs-more-transparency/
— New York ‘Doing Everything They Should Do’ by Tipping Off Illegals
https://www.breitbart.com/clips/2025/02/13/hispanic-caucus-chair-new-york-doing-everything-they-should-do-by-tipping-off-illegals/
— New York City Mayor Eric Adams (D): ‘We Need’ Illegals Who Haven’t Committed Further Crimes, ‘That Is Part of Who We Are’ (COMMENT: To come into a country illegally and/or to stay in a country illegally is to demonstrate gross disrespect for the rule of law and for that country. Of course, illegals say that under Biden’s policies, they came into America “legally” and/or that they are staying in America “legally.”)
https://www.breitbart.com/clips/2025/02/14/adams-we-need-illegals-who-havent-committed-further-crimes-that-is-part-of-who-we-are/
— Hegseth: Woke Generals ‘Will Have a Different Job in Due Time’
https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2025/02/13/exclusive-defense-secretary-pete-hegseth-woke-generals-have-different-job/

EPOCH TIMES
— IRS to Be Audited by DOGE. IRS collects trillions in taxes. (COMMENT: Democrat and RINO leaders do not want Republicans to audit IRS. I worked for the Democrats who ran GAO on audits of the Democrats who ran IRS for 3 years 1986-1988 while I was at the GS-13 Step 1-3 Levels, currently $117,807-$125,661/year. I had worked for the Democrats who ran IRS for almost 9 years 1971-1980, the last 5 1/2 years of which at the GS-12 Step 1-5 Levels, currently $99,069-$112,280/year. I agreed to take a $23,472/year pay cut in today’s dollars to transfer, that is, a downgrade from GS-12 Step 5 to GS-9 Step 10, because the Republican GAO Staff Manager (Bill) who had arranged the transfer promised me that he would assign me to audits of IRS and that he would rapidly promote me back to GS-12 Step 5 and then to GS-13. But my Democrat GAO superiors immediately replaced Bill with a nasty/vicious Democrat Staff Manager (Dave) who despised Republicans and especially Republicans who shared my demographics. Dave kept me off audits of IRS, gave me bad job assignments and unfair performance expectations and appraisals, and delayed my promotions back to GS-12 Step 5. But then, in 1985, Dave had to have major heart surgery and go on extended sick leave because of his heavy drinking. That enabled Bill to assign me to audits of IRS and to promote me to GS-13 in 1986. But then, Dave came back from sick leave and a) forced Bill to retire in 1987, b) threw me off audits of IRS in late 1988, c) gave me an extremely bad job assignment and unfair performance expectations and appraisal in 1989, and d) ranked me at the bottom of my coworkers for pay-for-performance (PFP) purposes in 1989. But thankfully,  Dave’s efforts to get rid of me moderated because my Congressman Henry Hyde came to my defense. But Dave nevertheless succeeded in a) keeping me off audits of IRS for the rest of my GAO career, b) always ranking me in the bottom of my coworkers for PFP, and c) forcing me to retire when I was 49 years old in 1997. If Dave had not taken the aforesaid adverse actions against me that he did, I would have always been assigned to audits of IRS and I would have been promoted to GS-13 sooner and then to GS-14, currently $139,211-$180,974/year, and then to GS-15, currently $163,749-$195,200/year, and then to Senior Executive Service, currently $195,200/year.)
https://www.theepochtimes.com/us/irs-to-be-audited-by-doge-trump-says-5809719
(FROM THE ARTICLE: The IRS will be audited by the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), President Donald Trump said on Feb. 13. “The Internal Revenue Service will be looked at like everybody else,” Trump told reporters at the White House in Washington. He said that just about every federal agency will be examined by DOGE, led by billionaire Elon Musk. “They’re doing a hell of a job. It’s an amazing job they’re doing,” Trump said. “I call it the force of super-geniuses, but it’s building, and you know they go up, and they talk to some of the people about certain deals, and they get all tongue-tied because these people get it. They’re very smart people. We need smart people.” The IRS declined to comment on the remarks. Trump was responding to a question about how DOGE reportedly arrived at the IRS on Thursday and whether he wanted to close the IRS. Trump said he did not expect the IRS, which is currently processing 2024 taxes, to be shuttered. Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) said on social media platform X, owned by Musk, that his office has heard that DOGE is at the IRS. “That means Musk’s henchmen are in a position to dig through a trove of data about every taxpayer in America. And if your refund is delayed, they could very well be the reason,” Wyden said. After DOGE accessed U.S. Department of Treasury payment systems earlier in the year, a group of Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives wrote to the acting IRS commissioner asking what confidential information DOGE had requested from the IRS and how many taxpayers had had their confidential information accessed by DOGE. Separately on Thursday, senior IRS executives were instructed to identify all contracts that were nonessential for termination, according to an internal email. The email said that the General Services Administration (GSA), which manages most government contracts, is demanding they review consulting contracts under their purview and determine whether they can be justified. The GSA deems a contract nonessential if it “merely generates a report, research, coaching, or an artifact,” the email says. “Consistent with the goals and directives of the Trump administration to eliminate waste, reduce spending, and increase efficiency, GSA has taken the first steps in a government-wide initiative to eliminate non-essential consulting contracts.” The GSA did not respond to a request for comment by publication time.)

FEDERALIST
— Advocating For Asylum Seekers Made Me Less Sympathetic To Illegal Migrants
https://thefederalist.com/2025/02/14/advocating-for-asylum-seekers-made-me-less-sympathetic-to-illegal-migrants/

NATIONAL REVIEW
— AOC Webinar Teaches Illegal Immigrants How to Avoid ICE Deportation
https://www.nationalreview.com/news/aoc-webinar-teaches-illegal-immigrants-how-to-avoid-ice-deportation/

REAL CLEAR POLITICS
— Homan: “AOC Is Going To Be In Trouble Now” For Delivering Webinar On How Illegals Can Evade ICE Apprehension
https://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2025/02/13/tom_homan_aoc_is_going_to_be_in_trouble_now_for_delivering_webinar_on_how_illegals_can_evade_ice_apprehension.html

FROM NATIONAL CENTER-LEFT SOURCES

CNN
— RAHM EMANUEL JOINS CNN
https://cnnpressroom.blogs.cnn.com/2025/02/13/rahm-emanuel-joins-cnn-as-senior-political-and-global-affairs-commentator/

REUTERS
— Thousands fired in US government as Trump, Musk purge federal workers (COMMENT: While I worked for the Democrats who ran GAO 1980-1997, the agency ever-increasingly shrank because of Republican-led budget cuts. My Democrat GAO superiors ever-increasingly punished me for that. I was one of the last Republicans who GAO hired. GAO audits IRS. The Democrats who ran GAO in 1980 let me transfer from IRS when I was 31 years old, but only if I took a $23,472/year (21%) pay cut in today’s dollars. They could not find a qualified Democrat, minority, female, younger person, or veteran who would take the job. My qualifications included having a) passed the CPA examination on my first attempt in 1979, b) almost completed the requirements for a master’s degree in accounting from DePaul, c) earned an MBA from Loyola in 1976, and d) worked for IRS for almost 9 years, the last 5 1/2 years of which at the GS-12 Step 1-5 Levels, currently $99,069-$112,280/year. To further punish me for Republican-led budget cuts, my Democrat GAO superiors a) delayed my promotions and never promoted me beyond GS-13, kept me off audits of IRS for all but 3 of the almost 18 years that I worked for GAO, always ranked me in the bottom half of my coworkers for pay-for-performance purposes, and forced me to retire when I was 49 years old in 1997.)
https://www.reuters.com/world/us/mass-firings-federal-workers-begin-trump-musk-purge-us-government-2025-02-13/

CBS NEWS
— U.S. is deporting African and Asian migrants to Panama in diplomatic breakthrough
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/us-deportations-panama-african-asian-migrants/

NEW YORK TMES
— Democrats say “Trump Wants to Destroy All Academia, Not Just the Woke Parts.”
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/02/14/opinion/trump-college-academia-woke.html

USA TODAY
— Musk, Trump degrade federal workers as they put them out of work. It’s sadistic. (COMMENT: What is your opinion of federal employees? From what I see, employers and just about everyone else have a negative opinion of past, present, and future federal employees. I was a federal employee for almost 30 years. I have been a federal retiree for more than 27 years.)
https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/columnist/2025/02/12/elon-musk-donald-trump-federal-workers-jobs-cruelty/78428472007/

WALL STREET JOURNAL
— Trump’s EEOC Firing Will Likely Prevail in Court. The justices’ precedents imply that he has the power to dismiss officials of ‘independent’ agencies. (COMMENT: How has EEOC impacted you? I became an IRS Revenue Officer when I was 22 years old in 1971 because my Firestone Store boss had rudely fired me. He did that because I had told him that I had accepted a job offer from Oldsmobile. But Oldsmobile withdrew that job offer saying it had just agreed to stop hiring Whites to settle an EEOC complaint.)
https://www.wsj.com/opinion/youre-fired-trump-says-the-justices-will-likely-agree-officials-dismissed-supreme-court-precedent-9b40b529
— Trump Layoffs Push Federal Workers Into Tough Job Hunt. Companies have pulled back on white-collar hiring, limiting options for government workers. (COMMENT: What is your opinion of federal employees? From what I see, employers and just about everyone else have a negative opinion of past, present, and future federal employees. I was a federal employee for almost 30 years. I have been a federal retiree for more than 27 years.)
https://www.wsj.com/economy/jobs/federal-workers-jobs-doge-37b761cd
(FROM THE ARTICLE: The Trump administration’s effort to slash the federal workforce is pushing employees into a challenging job market, where their age and lack of corporate experience can hold them back. Federal workers are also facing an environment where hiring for white-collar jobs has slowed. Despite the availability of state and local government jobs, many of these positions take place outside offices and aren’t a good match for federal workers’ experience.)

FORBES
— Jamie Dimon Reportedly Says He’ll Cut Some ‘Stupid’ DEI Costs At JPMorgan Chase (COMMENT: If Affirmative Action and DEI had been implemented earlier/faster, Dimon would have made to where he is now.)
https://www.forbes.com/sites/conormurray/2025/02/13/jamie-dimon-reportedly-says-hell-cut-some-stupid-dei-costs-at-jpmorgan-chase-here-are-all-the-companies-rolling-back-dei/

FORTUNE
— Democrat and RINO employers use DEI a) to not hire Republicans and b) to get rid of their Republican employees.
https://fortune.com/2025/02/14/companies-rolling-back-changing-dei-meta-target-fortune-500-diversity-equity-inclusion-policies/

HUFFINGTON POST
— Ever-increasingly, since the 1960s, the Democrats who run the federal government have used Affirmative Action and DEI a) to hire, retain, and promote Democrats who are minority, female, and/or younger and b) to get rid of their Republican employees who are White, male, and/or older.
https://www.aol.com/trump-trying-federal-workforce-whiter-003612069.html

ECONOMIC TIMES & NDTV
— “Will Take Back Verified Illegals”: PM Modi On Illegal Immigrants | PM Modi’s US Visit (COMMENT: How many of those who are in America illegally share you national origin?)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dqg2zhKkSUo
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xSm7bjhqMMA

INDIA TODAY
— Impact of US immigration raids on Indians: What visa applicants need to know. Many Indians planning to relocate to the United States have been left anxious after Donald Trump’s crackdown on illegals. As deportation of undocumented immigrants continues, here’s how people applying for work visas can avoid complications.
https://www.indiatoday.in/india/story/impact-of-us-immigration-raids-on-indians-what-visa-applicants-need-to-know-2679998-2025-02-14

GUARDIAN
— Trump administration sparks outcry as it continues to gut federal workforce. Major union as well as federal worker advocacy group condemn moves to fire probationary employees as thousands told to leave.
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/live/2025/feb/14/trump-musk-federal-government-layoffs-jd-vance-ukraine-latest

February 11, 2025

FROM ILLINOIS CENTER-LEFT SOURCES

ABC7
— DuPage County lawmakers to vote whether to remove Henry Hyde’s name from courthouse
https://abc7chicago.com/post/dupage-county-lawmakers-vote-remove-late-congressman-henry-hydes-name-courthouse/15892352/
(FROM THE ARTICLE: The DuPage County GOP Chair Kevin Coyne disagrees with removing Hyde’s name. “Henry Hyde was a titanic political figure in DuPage County for many, many years, He did a lot of wonderful things for our country and for our state over 30 plus years in Congress. He was a bipartisan gentleman, had a lot of support, a lot of friends on the other side of the aisle. He strikes me as the kind of official that we should be looking to model ourselves after.” The DuPage County Board will meet Tuesday at 10 a.m. If the resolution passes, the Hyde family will be given a plaque.)

CHICAGO TRIBUNE
— Orland Park resolution states police will work with ICE on immigration matters, opposes state law on issue (COMMENT: What positions do the leaders of your county, township, and municipality have on enforcement of immigration laws?)
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/02/10/orland-park-police-immigration/
— US judge keeps Trump plan to push out federal employees on hold (COMMENT: Democrats run the federal government. When federal agencies have to push out their employees, they first push out those who are Republican and then those who are White, male, older, non-veteran, Protestant, German American, and/or have ancestors who have been in America for a long time. I am all of the aforesaid. But I nevertheless survived for almost 18 years 1980-1997 as a GAO employee while Republicans ever-increasingly used budget cuts to push out the agency’s employees. The following helped me survive. I earned job-related professional certifications in 1997 (forensic accounting), 1996 (financial services auditing), 1994 (government financial management), 1990 (fraud examination), 1981 (internal auditing), and 1979 (accounting). I earned a job-related professional license in 1981 (CPA). I earned job-related master’s degrees in 1997 (financial markets and trading), 1980 (accounting), and 1976 (business).)
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/02/10/trump-plan-push-out-federal-workers/
— Illinois and 21 other states file lawsuit challenging ‘devastating’ cuts to federal health research funding
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/02/10/illinois-challengs-research-funding-cuts/
— Judge finds Trump administration hasn’t fully followed his order to unfreeze federal spending (COMMENT: How dependent on federal spending are those in your county, township, municipality, school district, and precinct? The more financial, health, and other problems that you have, the more dependent that you are on federal spending. Pritzker ever-increasingly a) attracts voters to Illinois who have problems and b) drives voters out of Illinois who do not have problems.)
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/02/10/trump-federal-spending/
(FROM THE ARTICLE: U.S. District Court Judge John McConnell became the first judge to find that the administration had not obeyed a court order. Federal money for things like early childhood education, pollution reduction and HIV prevention research has remained tied up even after his Jan. 31 order to blocking a planned halt on federal spending, he found.)
— Chicago has not been immune from air traffic controller shortages in recent years (COMMENT: I worked for GAO on an audit of FAA that involved air traffic controller staffing in the early 1980s.)
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/02/11/chicago-air-traffic-controller-shortages/
— Chicago says it hopes to open city-owned market instead of city-owned grocery store
https://www.yahoo.com/news/chicago-says-hopes-open-city-110000368.html?fr=sycsrp_catchall

CHICAGO SUN-TIMES
— Trump’s pardon of Blagojevich insults Illinoisans who are fed up with corruption. And can President Trump find no one with a clean record to represent Americans as ambassadors? Crime pays, it seems, in Trump’s orbit — including the Jan. 6 rioters he pardoned. (COMMENT: What is in your record that your critics/opponents use against you? My critics/opponents stress the adverse actions that they had their operatives and their dupes take against me.)
https://chicago.suntimes.com/editorials/2025/02/10/rod-blagojevich-donald-tump-presidential-pardon-corruption-joe-biden-hunter-chicago-illinois
— Trump says Palestinians won’t have right to return to Gaza under his US ‘ownership’ plan
https://chicago.suntimes.com/war-in-gaza/2025/02/10/trump-gaza-develop-plan-palestinians-no-right-to-return-united-states-us-ownership

DAILY HERALD
— Democrats ever-increasingly push more pot.
https://www.dailyherald.com/20250210/news/illinois-had-record-2-billion-in-legal-marijuana-sales-in-2024/
— FRONT PAGE: Illinois politicians react to Blagojevich pardon
https://www.dailyherald.com/20250210/nation-and-world-politics/it-sets-a-real-bad-example-illinois-politicians-react-to-blagojevich-pardon/
(FROM THE ARTICLE: Illinois Republican Party state central committee member Aaron Del Mar of Palatine didn’t object to Trump ending Blagojevich’s prison sentence early with a commutation five years ago but drew the line at wiping the disgraced politician’s slate clean with a pardon. “I think it sets a real bad example, especially since the jury is still out on the former speaker of the House,” Del Mar said, referring to Michael Madigan’s federal corruption trial. “It says that only certain people are going to be held accountable.” . . . “The former governor has served his time, and it’s time to move on,” said Zay, a former chair of the DuPage County Republican Party. While Zay thinks Blagojevich has worn out his welcome with Illinois voters, he said an ambassadorship “would be interesting.”)

WGN9
— Democrat leaders ever-increasingly promote more abortion. Why are there so many unwanted pregnancies?
https://wgnradio.com/health/ap-what-to-know-about-proposals-to-ban-abortion-pills-and-punish-women-who-seek-abortion/

FOX32
— Illinois leaders slam Trump’s decision to pardon Blagojevich
https://www.fox32chicago.com/news/blago-reaction-illinois-leaders
(FROM THE ARTICLE: Illinois Senate Republican Leader John Curran: “I strongly disagree with President Donald Trump’s decision to pardon disgraced former Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich. Illinois taxpayers have and continue to be burdened with the cost of public corruption, and this pardon sends the wrong message.”)

WTTW
— How Trump’s Plan to Shrink the Federal Workforce Could Impact Illinois (COMMENT: While I worked for the Democrats who ran GAO 1980-1997, Republicans shrank GAO’s work force in Illinois dramatically. My Democrat GAO superiors punished me severely for that.)
https://news.wttw.com/2025/02/10/how-trump-s-plan-shrink-federal-workforce-could-impact-illinois

WGN RADIO
— Democrats say that “With firings and lax enforcement, Trump moving to dismantle government’s public integrity guardrails.”
https://wgnradio.com/news/political-news/ap-with-firings-and-lax-enforcement-trump-moving-to-dismantle-governments-public-integrity-guardrails/
— Judge orders fired head of whistleblower agency reinstated while fight continues over Trump removal (COMMENT: While I worked for the Democrats who ran the federal government for almost 30 years, I ever-increasingly blew the whistle on their political affiliation discrimination, reverse discrimination, and age discrimination. They ever-increasingly punished me for that. My critics/opponents side with the Democrats. They promote political affiliation discrimination, reverse discrimination, age discrimination, religious discrimination, and national origin discrimination.)
https://wgnradio.com/news/political-news/ap-head-of-agency-that-protects-whistleblowers-sues-trump-over-firing/
— Democrats say “News influencers favored Trump over Harris during campaign.” Since 2000, my critics/opponents have demonized me, denigrated me, and condemned as being a failed and far too-conservative would-be news influencer.  Since 2000, they have blamed me and blamed my GOPUSA ILLINOIS newsletters for all the general election losses that Republican candidates on ballots in my precinct have suffered. According to my critics/opponents, those candidates lost general elections because voters want Democrat-Lite candidates and I paint candidates as being far more conservative than they want to be painted.)
https://wgnradio.com/news/technology-news/ap-news-influencers-favored-trump-over-harris-during-campaign-study-finds/
— Democrat leaders ever-increasingly promote more illegal immigration.
https://wgnradio.com/news/national/ap-migrants-stranded-in-mexico-try-to-restart-life-after-trump-eliminates-legal-pathway-to-us/

CENTRAL ILLINOIS PROUD
— Democrat leaders ever-increasingly promote more abortion. Why are there so many unwanted pregnancies?
https://www.centralillinoisproud.com/news/health-news/ap-what-to-know-about-proposals-to-ban-abortion-pills-and-punish-women-who-seek-abortion/

WIFR
— Trump’s Blagojevich pardon earns bipartisan disappointment from Illinois lawmakers
https://www.wifr.com/2025/02/11/trumps-blagojevich-pardon-earns-bipartisan-disappointment-illinois-lawmakers/
(FROM THE ARTICLE: “This is a decision I would not have come to, so it is something I would disagree with President Trump on,” argues Syverson. The Republican hopes Trump sees an improved Blagojevich; he worries the official forgiveness sends the wrong message. “Maybe he’s learned his ways, but he was guilty of what he did and there should be consequences for that,” comments Syverson. . .Syverson says he trusts Trump’s judgment with any further decision. “Hopefully, he [Blagojevich] will use this, and his history has been a learning lesson and that he’ll be able to make good,” exclaims the state senator. Before signing the official forgiveness, Trump characterized Blagojevich’s treatment as a “terrible injustice.” The President declared it time the former governor had a “normal life.”)

NPR ILLINOIS
— Democrat leaders use against Trump those who Trump pardoned
https://www.nprillinois.org/2025-02-10/presidents-pardons-of-insurrectionists-stoke-worries-in-springfields-jewish-community

CAPITOL FAX
— Morning briefing
https://capitolfax.com/2025/02/11/isabel%e2%80%99s-morning-briefing-454/

FROM ILLINOIS CENTER-RIGHT SOURCES

WIREPOINTS
— One big example of why Illinois badly needs a DOGE of its own
https://wirepoints.org/one-big-example-of-why-illinois-badly-needs-a-doge-of-its-own-wirepoints/

JEFF BERKOWITZ
— IL GOP House Leader Tony McCombie joins Trump’s fight w/criminal aliens
https://jeffberkowitz208.substack.com/p/il-gop-house-leader-tony-mccombie

ILLINOIS POLICY INSTITUTE
— Illinois lawmakers plan to short pensions by $5.1B in July
https://www.illinoispolicy.org/illinois-lawmakers-plan-to-short-pensions-by-5-1b-in-july/
— Unfunded mandates keep property taxes high
https://www.illinoispolicy.org/unfunded-mandates-keep-property-taxes-high/

FROM NATIONAL CENTER-RIGHT SOURCES

WASHINGTON TIMES
— Google axes DEI, progressive-backed markers from its calendar
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2025/feb/10/google-calendar-axes-dei-labels-black-history-mont/

WASHINGTON EXAMINER
— Trump adopts Biden’s legal playbook to challenge sanctuary cities
https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/policy/immigration/3315568/trump-adopts-biden-legal-playbook-challenge-sanctuary-cities/

NEW YORK POST
— Trump’s all-out assault on woke is tearing down the left’s cultural sway
https://nypost.com/2025/02/10/opinion/trumps-war-on-woke-is-tearing-down-the-lefts-cultural-sway/
— Anti-woke activist targets Jamie Dimon’s JPMorgan for DEI battle
https://nypost.com/2025/02/10/us-news/anti-woke-activist-targets-jamie-dimons-jpmorgan-for-dei-battle/

AMERICAN THINKER
— Trump is just the tip of the iceberg
https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2025/02/trump_is_just_the_tip_of_the_iceberg.html

BREITBART
— Democrats Help Illegal Migrants Avoid Legal Repatriation
https://www.breitbart.com/immigration/2025/02/10/democrats-help-illegal-migrants-avoid-legal-repatriation/
— On Monday, White County Resident Circuit Judge T. Scott Webb ruled against a requirement that Illinois residents must obtain a Firearm Owners Identification (FOID) card in order to possess a gun in the home for self-defense.
https://www.breitbart.com/2nd-amendment/2025/02/10/circuit-court-judge-strikes-down-illinois-foid-card-requirement-guns-home/

COLLEGE FIX
— Trump fires ‘woke’ advisory board leaders at military academies
https://www.thecollegefix.com/trump-fires-woke-advisory-board-leaders-at-military-academies/

DAILY WIRE
— Trump Wasn’t Joking: Some IRS Workers To Help With Deportation. Trump said last month that he might send IRS workers “to the border.” (COMMENT: While I worked for IRS in 1971, I was assigned for 2 weeks to Nixon project to fight inflation.)
https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-wasnt-joking-some-irs-workers-to-help-with-deportation-report-says

FEDERALIST
— Naval Academy Launches Review Of School Clubs To Ensure Compliance With Trump’s DEI Prohibition
https://thefederalist.com/2025/02/10/naval-academy-launches-review-of-school-clubs-to-ensure-compliance-with-trumps-dei-prohibition/

FOX NEWS
— Pritzker has a long history of not following the law
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i8cksnIscE0
— Trump’s Department of Homeland Security looking to deputize IRS agents for immigration enforcement. DHS Secretary Noem requests IRS agents be provided to help ICE. (COMMENT: Fox 3 years, I worked for GAO on audits of IRS’s Criminal Investigation Division at the GS-13 Step 1-3 Levels, currently $117,807-$125,661/year.)
https://www.foxnews.com/us/trumps-dhs-deputize-irs-agents-immigration-enforcement
— Trump pardons former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich: ‘He was set up’
https://www.foxnews.com/video/6368623514112

LAW ENFORCEMENT TODAY
— NYC teachers’ union defies Trump, coaches teachers to advise illegals how to handle ICE
https://lawenforcementtoday.com/nyc-teachers-union-defies-trump-administration-coaches-teachers-to-advise-illegals-how-to-handle-ice

LEGAL INSURRECTION
— CBS News Poll Shows Overwhelming Positive Approval of Trump
https://legalinsurrection.com/2025/02/cbs-news-poll-shows-overwhelming-positive-approval-of-trump/

POINTS & FIGURES
— Secession Is a Good Idea
https://jeffreycarter.substack.com/p/secession-is-a-good-idea

FROM NATIONAL CENTER-LEFT SOURCES

ABC NEWS
— FEMA halts migrant housing funds in NY after Musk’s criticism
https://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/fema-halting-payments-migrant-housing-new-york-after-118670265

CBS NEWS
—  Blagojevich expresses gratitude for pardon by President Trump
https://www.cbsnews.com/chicago/video/former-gov-rod-blagojevich-expresses-gratitude-for-pardon-by-president-trump/

MSNBC
— The closer one looks at Trump’s Blagojevich pardon, the worse it appears. The message to politicians convicted or accused of corruption couldn’t be clearer: You have a friend in the Oval Office.
https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/maddowblog/closer-one-looks-trumps-blagojevich-pardon-worse-appears-rcna191638

NEW YORK TIMES
— Trump’s Blueprint for Bending the Media Has Nixon Written All Over It (COMMENT: My critics/opponents destroy those like me a) who they cannot manipulate or dominate, b) who refuse to glorify and praise them, c) who refuse to pander to them, d) who refuse to serve as one of their operatives or dupes, d) who refuse to coverup their wrongdoing, and/or e) who refuse to give them money. I should write about my critics/opponents. I would focus on those who have lots of religious, government, political, and/or financial clout in Wheaton, Milton Township, DuPage County, and Illinois and who have had their operatives and their dupes take the most/biggest adverse actions against me.)
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/02/09/business/media/trump-nixon-media-press.html
— Democrat and RINO employers use DEI a) to not hire Republicans and b) to get rid of their Republican employees.
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/02/10/business/trump-dei-employers.html
— White House Undermines Watchdog for Consumers (COMMENT: My critics/opponents are a) pro-seller and b) anti-buyer.)
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/02/09/business/vought-cfpb-musk-trump.html
— DOGE Is Corrosive to Our Democracy (COMMENT: If Gingrich had reformed GAO instead of gutting it, there would be no need for DOGE.)
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/02/10/opinion/treasure-secretaries-doge-musk.html

WASHINGTON POST
— Trump pardons Rod Blagojevich, who tried to sell Obama’s vacated Senate seat. The former Illinois governor was convicted on multiple charges of corruption in 2011. He served eight years in prison before Trump commuted his sentence in 2020.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2025/02/10/trump-pardon-rod-blagojevich-illinois-governor/

WALL STREET JOURNAL
— Democrats and RINOs stand up for Democrats and for RINOs.
https://www.wsj.com/opinion/democrats-stand-up-for-the-bureaucrats-protest-dodge-government-policy-d9b18071

MARKETPLACE
— Trump’s purge of federal workers and its historical parallels (COMMENT: The Democrats who ran GAO 1980-1997 gave purge lists to all of their new managers of their Chicago office. Of course, I was at the top of all of those lists because I am conservative, Republican, White, male, older, non-veteran, Protestant, German American, and my ancestors had been in America since 1844.)
https://www.marketplace.org/shows/make-me-smart/trumps-purge-of-federal-workers-and-its-historical-parallels/

POLITICO
— Trump is slashing agencies long hated by the GOP. The next cuts might be harder. “You gotta light things on fire that burn the brightest and have the most distinctive smell of waste fraud and abuse,” said one White House ally. (COMMENT: One reason why I took a $23,472/year (21%) pay cut in today’s dollars to transfer from IRS to GAO was to escape hatred against IRS employees.)
https://www.politico.com/news/2025/02/11/trump-musk-vought-future-cut-targets-00203444
— ‘JD gets the game’: Vance embraces role as social media provocateur. Vance’s approach to social media isn’t new. But his perch in the presidential line of succession is.
https://www.politico.com/news/2025/02/10/jd-vance-donald-trump-online-trolling-00203429

February 8, 2025 Evening Edition

FROM ILLINOIS CENTER-LEFT SOURCES

CHICAGO TRIBUNE
— Aurora mayoral candidates share their views on city issues at forum (COMMENT: What are the issues in your township, municipality, and school district?)
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/02/08/aurora-mayoral-candidates-share-their-views-on-city-issues-at-forum/
— Donald Trump orders freeze of aid to South Africa citing country’s land expropriation law
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/02/07/trump-freeze-aid-south-africa/
— Democrat leaders ever-increasingly promote more illegal immigration
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/02/08/community-leaders-speak-out-under-little-village-arch-hundreds-rally-for-day-of-love-and-resistance/
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/02/08/nonprofit-warns-of-vigilantism-against-migrants-after-skokie-family-receives-deportation-threats/

CHICAGO SUN-TIMES
— Democrat leaders ever-increasingly promote more illegal immigration
https://chicago.suntimes.com/immigration/2025/02/07/trump-immigration-executive-order-refugees-resettlement-united-nations-stop-work-order
— Democrat leaders ever-increasingly demonize, denigrate, and condemn Republicans.
https://chicago.suntimes.com/columnists/2025/02/07/illinois-jb-pritzker-revenue-squeeze-trump-congressional-gop-cut-medicaid-expansion-rich-miller

DAILY HEARLD
— Democrats far outspent GOP rivals in suburban U.S. House races — none more than Raja Krishnamoorthi (COMMENT: What discourages you from giving money to Republican candidates? For me, it includes my having less money. In today’s dollars, my federal pension a) is only 44% of what my GAO salary was in 1997 and b) less than what my IRS salary was in 1972. Further, my Social Security is dramatically less because I get a federal pension. Further, far too many unsuccessful Republican candidates on ballots in my precinct since 2000 who I did much to help elect blame me and blame my GOPUSA ILLINOIS newsletters for their defeats.)
https://www.dailyherald.com/20250208/us-congress-politics/democrats-far-outspent-gop-rivals-in-suburban-u-s-house-races-none-more-than-raja-krishnamoorthi/
(FROM THE ARTICLE: Republican candidates in northeast Illinois struggle to compete financially with their rivals across the aisle. Of the eight Republican congressional candidates who ran in the suburbs last year, the 10th District’s Jim Carris of Lake Forest spent the most — nearly $681,000. The campaign spending totals for four others — Rice in the 8th District plus James Marter in the 14th, Jerry Evans in the 11th and Niki Conforti in the 6th — were lower in the six-figure range. Ramirez’s GOP challenger in the 3rd District, John Booras, spent less than $40,000 on his campaign; the 9th District’s Seth Cohen spent less than $8,000 on his race. Postelection and year-end reports weren’t available for 5th District GOP candidate Tommy Hanson.)
— Democrat and RINO leaders ever-increasingly use DEI to get rid of Republicans.
https://www.dailyherald.com/20250208/editorials/daily-herald-opinion-in-defense-of-dei-the-phrase-diversity-equity-and-inclusion-may-sound-unga/
— Democrat leaders ever-increasingly promote more illegal immigration
https://www.dailyherald.com/20250207/nation-and-world-politics/latino-evangelical-churches-gear-up-to-face-possible-immigration-enforcement-in-churches/

CRAIN’S CHICAGO BUSINESS
— Illinois revs up more EV incentives amid uncertain fate of federal rebates
https://www.chicagobusiness.com/politics/illinois-revs-more-ev-incentives-amid-federal-uncertainties
— Democrat leaders ever-increasingly promote more gambling.
https://www.chicagobusiness.com/economy/illinois-generates-17-billion-casino-tax-revenue

ABC7
— Trump announces plans to gut the Kennedy Center board, appoint himself chairman
https://abc7chicago.com/post/kennedy-center-president-donald-trump-says-hes-firing-board-trustees-members-naming-himself-chairman/15882171/
— Trump official’s directive tying transportation grants to birth rates could hinder blue states
https://abc7chicago.com/post/us-birth-rates-state-donald-trump-transportation-secretary-sean-duffy-circulates-memo-tying-grants-marriage/15881663/
— Chicago Auto Show 2025: Doors open for Day 1 at McCormick Place
https://abc7chicago.com/post/chicago-auto-show-2025-doors-open-saturday-morning-mccormick-place/15881013/

WGN TV
— Democrat leaders ever-increasingly promote more illegal immigration
https://wgntv.com/news/chicago-news/little-village-protest-trump-deportations/
— Illinois faces funding cut-off for electric vehicle charging stations; Pritzker vows to fight back
https://wgntv.com/news/chicago-news/illinois-ev-funding-cuts/

FOX32
— Time magazine cover puts Elon Musk behind Trump’s desk
https://www.fox32chicago.com/news/time-magazine-elon-musk-trump-desk

WTTW
— Democrat leaders ever-increasingly promote more illegal immigration
https://news.wttw.com/2025/02/06/illinois-farm-workers-consumers-alert-amid-mass-deportation-threats

WBEZ
— Lurie Children’s Hospital pauses gender care surgeries for those younger than 19. The move comes after President Donald Trump’s executive order that said the federal government would not support these procedures.
https://www.wbez.org/2025/02/07/lurie-childrens-hospital-pauses-gender-care-surgeries-for-those-younger-than-19

CHAMPAIGN/URBANA NEWS GAZETTE
— Democrat leaders ever-increasingly promote more LGBTQ
https://www.news-gazette.com/news/nation-world/trump-policies-on-gender-affirming-care-and-passports-for-transgender-people-challenged-in-court/article_a7b7c426-ae4e-58d7-934b-d7c89861987a.html

SOUTHERN
— Here are all the agencies that Elon Musk and DOGE have been trying to dismantle so far
https://southernillinoisnow.com/2025/02/08/here-are-all-the-agencies-that-elon-musk-and-doge-have-been-trying-to-dismantle-so-far/

EDWARDSVILLE INTELLIGENCER
— Democrat leaders ever-increasingly promote more hatred against Trump
https://www.theintelligencer.com/news/article/donald-trump-protest-edwardsville-il-20154122.php

WIFR
— Democrat leaders get high school students to promote more illegal immigration
https://www.wifr.com/gallery/2025/02/08/jefferson-high-schoolers-protest-trumps-immigration-policies/

EFFINGHAM RADIO
— IL House Leader McCombie Demands Transparency And Accountability On Immigration
https://www.effinghamradio.com/2025/02/08/il-house-leader-mccombie-demands-transparency-and-accountability-on-immigration/

CAPITOL FAX
— Afternoon roundup
https://capitolfax.com/2025/02/07/isabel%e2%80%99s-afternoon-roundup-245/

FROM ILLINOIS CENTER-RIGHT SOURCES

GOPUSA ILLINOIS
— Anticipate/expect that ever-increasingly, Democrat leaders will use their mainstream news media a)  to promote the Democrat Party platform, that is, to promote dependency on government and charity, LGBTQ, abortion, mass/illegal immigration, booze, gambling, pot, and other vices, diminishment of Second Amendment rights, and Affirmative Action and DEI, that is, race and gender based preference giving, political affiliation discrimination, reverse discrimination, age discrimination, religious discrimination, and national origin discrimination, b) to demonize, denigrate, and condemn the Republican Party platform, c) to elect Democrat candidates, and d) to defeat Republican candidates. – Dave Diersen
http://www.gopillinois.com

MCHENRY COUNTY BLOG
— Crystal Laker Trevor Keegan in Super Bowl
mchenrycountyblog.com/2025/02/08/crystal-laker-trevor-keegan-in-super-bowl/
— Blago Being Talked about as Trump Pick for Ambassador to Serbia
https://wwwhttps://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2025/02/07/blago-being-talked-about-as-trump-pick-for-ambassador-to-serbia/
— Lakemoor Refuses Comment on $40 Million Illegal Search and Seizure Hemp Suit
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2025/02/07/lakemoor-refuses-comment-on-40-million-illegal-search-and-seizure-hemp-suit/
— Pritzker Flips on No New Taxes
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2025/02/07/pritzker-flips-on-no-new-taxes/
— Tariffs and How Value Added Taxes Are “Backdoor Tariffs”
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2025/02/07/tariffs-and-how-value-added-taxes-are-backdoor-tariffs/
— Correcting County Administrator Pete Austin’s Salary Information — Seeking 5.3% Raise
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2025/02/07/correcting-county-administrator-pete-austins-salary-information/
— Major “Sin” Tax Brings in $1.5 Billion
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2025/02/07/major-sin-tax-brings-in-1-5-billion/
— Schakowsky on Trump’s Early Days as President
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2025/02/08/schakowsky-on-trumps-early-days-as-president/
— Pritzker Purports to Re-Name Lake Michigan “Lake Illinois”
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2025/02/08/pritzker-purports-to-re-name-lake-michigan-lake-illinois/

FROM NATIONAL CENTER-RIGHT SOURCES

WASHINGTON TIMES
— Trump says DOGE will look into more federal agencies (COMMENTL Will DOGE look into GAO?
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2025/feb/7/trump-says-doge-look-federal-agencies/
— Alaska lawmakers officially oppose Trump’s push to change Denali to Mount McKinley
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2025/feb/8/alaska-lawmakers-officially-oppose-trump-push-chan/
— Russia is using Cuba, Nicaragua, and Venezuela to create a migration crisis. The axis of evil is sending masses of illegal immigrants to flood the southwest border.
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2025/feb/6/russia-using-cuba-nicaragua-venezuela-create-migra/

NEW YORK POST
— Trump ordered Secret Service to provide ‘every bit of information’ on would-be assassins
https://nypost.com/2025/02/08/us-news/trump-ordered-secret-service-to-provide-every-bit-of-information-on-would-be-assassins/

BAPTIST NEWS
— Remember that time Wheaton College congratulated Russell Vought?
https://baptistnews.com/article/remember-that-time-wheaton-college-congratulated-russell-vought/
(FROM THE ARTICLE: Want to know how controversial it was for Russell Vought to be confirmed by the Senate as director of the White House Office of Management and Budget? Just ask Wheaton College, where Vought earned a bachelor’s degree. On Friday, Feb. 7, the Christian college posted a note on its Facebook page with Vought’s photo saying, “Wheaton College congratulates and prays for 1998 graduate Russell Vought regarding his senatorial confirmation to serve as the White House Director of the Office of Management and Budget!” Then the alumni base of the Illinois school began to vent their disdain for Vought and their disbelief that their alma mater would highlight someone responsible for creating Project 2025 and saying he wants to make federal employees so miserable they all quit — among other things. By Saturday morning, the post was removed from Facebook.)

DAILY WIRE
— Wheaton College Caves to Woke Mob, Apologizes For Congratulating Alum In Trump Admin. Wheaton College posted, and then retracted, a message congratulating Russ Vought on his confirmation to lead the Office of Management and Budget.
https://www.dailywire.com/news/christian-college-caves-to-woke-mob-apologizes-for-congratulating-alum-in-trump-admin

FOX NEWS
— Hegseth to look into ‘what went wrong’ in Afghanistan and pledges accountability, slams diversity motto. ‘We will find strength in unity,’ not diversity, Hegseth says.
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/hegseth-look-what-went-wrong-afghanistan-pledges-accountability-slams-diversity-motto
— Teachers express fears as Trump strips federal funding for schools teaching CRT. ‘Every teacher I’ve talked to is completely freaked out by it,’ one retired teacher told The Boston Globe.
https://www.foxnews.com/media/teachers-express-fears-trump-strips-federal-funding-schools-teaching-crt

NEWSMAX
— Time for Homan to Decisively Act on Defiant Illegals
https://www.newsmax.com/reagan/homan-cbs-ice/2025/02/08/id/1198327/

FROM NATIONAL CENTER-LEFT SOURCES

CBS NEWS
— Democrat leaders ever-increasingly promote more LGBTQ
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/transgender-rights-lawsuits-challenge-trump-policies/

WASHINGTON POST
— Attacks on Catholics, Lutherans suggest new Trump approach on religion. Allies of the president are leveling attacks on religious groups, including Catholics and Lutherans, and questioning their efforts to help migrants.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2025/02/08/catholic-lutheran-vance-flynn-musk-trump/
— Trump says some white South Africans are oppressed, could be resettled in the US. They say no thanks. Groups representing some of South Africa’s white minority have responded to a plan by U.S. President Donald Trump to offer them refugee status and resettlement in the United States by saying: thanks, but no thanks.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2025/02/08/trump-south-africa-afrikaners/ac037124-e633-11ef-ab83-bb30e4340014_story.html

REASON
— America’s enemies want mass immigration.
https://reason.com/volokh/2025/02/08/trumps-cruel-assault-on-legal-immigration/

February 8, 2025

FROM ILLINOIS CENTER-LEFT SOURCES

ABC7
— Pritzker responds to ‘garbage’ DOJ lawsuit over sanctuary city policies
https://abc7chicago.com/post/illinois-governor-jb-pritzker-responds-garbage-doj-lawsuit-sanctuary-city-policies/15877508/
— Blagojevich may take role as U.S. ambassador to Serbia
https://abc7chicago.com/post/former-illinois-governor-rod-blagojevich-may-take-role-trump-administration-us-ambassador-serbia-politico-report/15879085/

FOX32
— Blagojevich may be considered for Trump Administration role
https://www.fox32chicago.com/news/rod-blagojevich-may-be-considered-trump-administration-role-report-says

WTTW
— ‘Get out of the way’: Salvi calls on Pritzker to work with Trump administration
https://www.audacy.com/wbbm780/news/local/illinois-gop-chair-salvi-tells-pritzker-to-work-with-trump

CHICAGO TRIBUNE
— FRONT PAGE TOP OF FOLD WITH BIG PICTURE: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly promote more illegal immigration.
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/02/08/a-chicagoans-journey-through-incarceration-deportation-and-the-fight-for-a-new-path/

CHICAGO SUN-TIMES
— Pritzker trolls Trump with faux Illinois annexation of Green Bay, renaming of Lake Michigan. Pritzker took Trump’s stated desire to take over Greenland as a cue to sarcastically announce “Illinois will now be annexing Green Bay to protect itself against enemies, foreign and domestic.”
https://chicago.suntimes.com/politics/2025/02/07/pritzker-lake-illinois-green-bay-video-trump
— Trump says he’s firing Kennedy Center board members, naming himself chairman. Trump also indicated he would be dictating programming at one of the nation’s premier cultural institutions, writing on his social media website that the current board members “do not share our Vision for a Golden Age in Arts and Culture.”
https://chicago.suntimes.com/politics/donald-trump/2025/02/07/trump-firing-kennedy-center-board-trustees-members-naming-himself-chairman
— ALL OF THE FRONT PAGE: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly promote more illegal immigration.
https://chicago.suntimes.com/immigration/2025/02/05/chicago-immigration-lyons-elgin-trump-ice-raids-border-wall-immigration-know-your-rights

DAILY HERALD
— FRONT PAGE TOP OF FOLD WITH BIG PICTURE: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly promote more illegal immigration.
https://www.dailyherald.com/20250207/news/conant-high-students-walk-out-to-protest-deportations/

CRAIN’S CHICAGO BUSINESS
— Pritzker takes aim at Team Trump over immigration — and Lake Illinois
https://www.chicagobusiness.com/politics/pritzker-goes-trump-bondi-over-immigration-lawsuit

SPRINGFIELD STATE JOURNAL REGISTER
— Pritzker pokes fun at Trump, jokes he’s renaming Lake Michigan
https://www.sj-r.com/story/news/state/2025/02/07/poking-fun-at-trump-pritzker-moves-to-annex-green-bay/78340045007/

STATELINE
— Illinois bill would remove student performance from teacher reviews (COMMENT: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly attract marginalized students to Illinois.)
https://www.mystateline.com/news/local-news/illinois-bill-would-remove-how-students-perform-from-teacher-reviews/

CENTRAL ILLINOIS PROUD
— Trump is signing up local law officers to help with immigration enforcement (COMMENT: Hopefully, the leaders of your county and municipal law enforcement agencies have signed up to help with immigration enforcement.)
https://www.centralillinoisproud.com/news/national/ap-trump-is-signing-up-local-law-officers-to-help-with-immigration-enforcement/

WAND TV
— Trump is signing up local law officers to help with immigration enforcement. Republican lawmakers in about dozen states are advancing proposals that could aid President Donald Trump’s deportation efforts.
https://www.wandtv.com/news/national/trump-is-signing-up-local-law-officers-to-help-with-immigration-enforcement/article_a672a2e8-4544-5594-835c-92b4afc3ee43.html

NPR ILLINOIS
— Trump supporters welcome the first steps in his immigration crackdown
https://www.nprillinois.org/2025-02-07/trump-supporters-welcome-the-first-steps-in-his-immigration-crackdown

CAPITOL FAX
— Afternoon roundup
https://capitolfax.com/2025/02/07/isabel%e2%80%99s-afternoon-roundup-245/

FROM ILLINOIS CENTER-RIGHT SOURCES

WIREPOINTS
— Update on discrimination lawsuits against Bally’s Chicago and City of Chicago
https://wirepoints.org/update-on-discrimination-lawsuits-against-ballys-chicago-and-city-of-chicago-wirepoints/

CENTER SQUARE ILLINOIS
— Advocate warns ‘lack of community care’ around Obama library in Chicago
https://www.thecentersquare.com/illinois/article_50582248-e327-11ef-a170-33f03845bdc0.html

MCHENRY COUNTY BLOG
— Answers Sought for Northeastern Illinois Transportation Survey
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2025/02/07/answers-sought-for-transportation-survey/
— Campaign Committees with State Board of Elections Fines Preventing Candidates from Running for Office Until Payment Made
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2025/02/07/campaign-committees-with-state-board-of-elections-fines-preventing-candidates-from-running-for-office-until-payment-made/
— Two Running Write-In Campaigns for Marengo Township Trustee
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2025/02/07/two-running-write-in-campaigns-for-marengo-township-trustee/
— Pritzker Celebrates Pot Sales
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2025/02/06/pritzker-celebrates-pot-sales/
— McLaughlin Seeks to Emulate Other State’s Emulation of Trump’s DOGE
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2025/02/06/mclaughlin-seeks-to-emulate-other-states-emulation-of-trumps-doge/

GOPUSA ILLINOIS
— From what I see, to win elections going forward, Democrat leaders have decided to double down on promoting a) hatred against Trump and b) dependency on government and charity, LGBTQ, abortion, mass/illegal immigration, booze, gambling, pot, and other vices, diminishment of Second Amendment rights, and Affirmative Action and DEI, that is, race and gender based preference giving, political affiliation discrimination, reverse discrimination, age discrimination, religious discrimination, and national origin discrimination. – Dave Diersen
http://www.gopillinois.com
— According to the White House, 65,000 federal employees have accepted buyout offers. What is your position on buyouts and early retirement offers? In 1993, when I was 45 years old, the Democrats who ran GAO “offered” $25,000 buyouts and early retirement to get rid of their older White male non-veteran employees who they had not promoted to GS-15, currently $163,749-$180,974/year. I was eligible because I had 25 years of federal service – 13 with GAO, 9 with IRS, and 3 with the Post Office. They succeeded in forcing me to retire in 1997 just before their “offer” expired. If I had not succumbed, I would not have been eligible for regular retirement until 2003. Things that I did that helped me survive 1993-1997 include a) earning a master’s degree in financial markets and trading in 1997, b) becoming a Certified Forensic Accountant in 1997, Financial Services Auditor in 1996, Government Financial Manager in 1994, Fraud Examiner in 1990, Internal Auditor and licensed CPA in 1981, and CPA in 1979, and c) earning master’s degrees in accounting from DePaul in 1980 and in business from Loyola in 1976. If I was still working for GAO, that is, if my Democrat GAO superiors had not forced me to retire when I was 49 in 1997, a) I would not have gotten $1.8 million in Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) pension payments since 1997 in today’s dollars and b) I would have paid into the CSRS $286,262 (7% of my salary) in today’s dollar.)
— Trump has pledged to remove corrupt FBI agents. To remove me, my Democrat GAO superiors did not hint/imply/argue/shout that I was corrupt. But constructively, they hinted/implied/argued/shouted that because I opposed their political affiliation discrimination, reverse discrimination, age discrimination, religious discrimination, and national origin discrimination, I was a White supremacist, Nazi, KKK member, hater, racist, sexist, bigot, and even worse things. They had trouble hinting/implying/arguing/shouting that I was incompetent because I had a) become a licensed CPA, b) passed the CPA and Certified Internal Auditor examinations on my first attempt, c) earned four more job-related professional certifications, and d) earned three job-related master’s degrees. I should write about the aforesaid. – Dave Diersen
http://www.gopillinois.com
— David Hogg has become the Democratic National Committee’s First Gen Z Vice Chair. If the following would establish a Vice Chair position for Baby Boomers, I would apply for it: Illinois Republican Party, DuPage County Republican Central Committee, and Milton Township Republican Organization. I would also apply for Vice Chair positions for conservatives, Whites, males, Protestants, German Americans, and those whose ancestors have been in America for a long time. – Dave Diersen
http://www.gopillinois.com
— Are you or someone who you know interested in buying our Iron Gate Motor Condo in Naperville? If so, please let me know. My wife and I are considering buying a more expensive unit there. – Dave Diersen
http://www.gopillinois.com

FROM NATIONAL CENTER-RIGHT SOURCES

WASHINGTON TIMES
— Trump calls for ‘balanced budget’ after proposing tax cuts costing at least $5 trillion
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2025/feb/7/donald-trump-calls-balanced-budget-proposing-tax-c/
— Immigrants took nearly 90% of new jobs since 2020 (COMMENT: If there had been as many immigrants when I was young as there are now, they would have gotten the jobs that I got.)
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2025/feb/7/immigrants-took-nearly-90-new-jobs-since-2020/
— Breaking free from the addiction to government schools. The state has only its best interests at heart.
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2025/feb/6/breaking-free-addiction-government-schools/
— Trump says he will name himself Kennedy Center board chair and impose programming changes
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2025/feb/7/trump-says-name-kennedy-center-board-chair-impose-/
— Justice Department takes fight to sanctuary cities
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2025/feb/7/trump-launches-multi-front-attack-sanctuary-polici/

WASHINGTON EXAMINER
— Radical LGBT activists lash out over Trump protecting women’s sports
https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/restoring-america/fairness-justice/3314702/lgbt-activists-lash-out-trump-women-sports/

WASHINGTON FREE BEACON
— Top Biden EV Bus Maker Nears Bankruptcy, Leaving School Districts and Tens of Millions of Taxpayer Dollars in Limbo. EPA administrator Lee Zeldin tells the Free Beacon he is ‘committed to delivering’ answers on green spending.
https://freebeacon.com/energy/bidens-favorite-ev-bus-maker-is-nearing-bankruptcy-and-producing-no-buses-leaving-tens-of-millions-of-taxpayer-dollars-in-limbo/

NEW YORK POST
— Trump appoints himself Kennedy Center chair, fires board members and blasts past drag shows ‘targeting’ children
https://nypost.com/2025/02/07/us-news/trump-to-purge-kennedy-center-board-of-trustees-and-make-himself-chairman/
— Here’s what’s really driving Donald Trump’s tariff threats
https://nypost.com/2025/02/07/opinion/heres-whats-really-driving-donald-trumps-tariff-threats/

BREITBART
— Newsom Signs $50 Million to Fight Trump — After Asking for Federal Aid for Fires
https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2025/02/07/newsom-signs-50-million-to-fight-trump-after-asking-for-federal-aid-for-fires/

DAILY WIRE
— ICE Arrests 11,000 Illegal Aliens In First 18 Days Of Trump Administration. The Trump administration is working to expand ICE’s detention capacity.
https://www.dailywire.com/news/ice-arrests-11000-illegal-aliens-in-first-18-days-of-trump-administration

EPOCH TIMES
— Trump Revokes Biden’s Security Clearance, Bars Him From Intelligence Briefings. Biden had previously revoked Trump’s access to intelligence briefings after he took office, following the events of Jan. 6, 2021.
https://www.theepochtimes.com/us/trump-revokes-joe-bidens-security-clearance-bars-him-from-receiving-intelligence-briefings-5806401

FOX NEWS
— Frustrated Chicagoans back ICE deportations, applaud DOJ lawsuit targeting sanctuary policies. Vashon Tuncle tells ‘Ingraham Angle’ Trump, Homan have growing support from residents to crack down on migrants.
https://www.foxnews.com/media/frustrated-chicagoans-back-ice-deportations-applaud-doj-lawsuit-targeting-sanctuary-policies
— How Trump is uprooting radical ’60s foundations of poisonous DEI and CRT programs. There had been America haters in the past, but the ’60s was the decade when these ideas took root. (COMMENT: Since the 1960s, my critics/opponents have used Affirmative Action and DEI to get rid of me.)
https://www.foxnews.com/opinion/how-trump-uprooting-radical-60s-foundations-poisonous-dei-crt-programs
— Bondi sends warning to sanctuary cities: ‘Comply or you’re next’
https://www.foxnews.com/video/6368429031112

MRC TV
— Woke Bishop Who Lectured Trump Got Tens of Millions of Taxpayers Dollars to ‘Resettle’ Migrants
https://www.mrctv.org/blog/nick-kangadis/woke-bishop-who-lectured-trump-got-tens-millions-taxpayers-dollars-resettle

FROM NATIONAL CENTER-LEFT SOURCES

CNN
— Trump’s administration is switching positions in a major Supreme Court case on transgender rights, backing away from the Biden administration’s opposition to Tennessee’s ban on gender-affirming care for minors. (COMMENT: Under Bush, his DOJ backed the Democrats who ran GAO in Diersen v. GAO, that is, Bush backed political affiliation discrimination, reverse discrimination, and age discrimination. The Democrats who ran GAO would not have and could not have forced me to retire when I was 49 years old in 1997 if I had been a Democrat, minority, and/or female.)
https://www.cnn.com/2025/02/07/politics/supreme-court-lgbtq-skrmetti-switch/index.html

REUTERS
— Trump administration for now not naming January 6 FBI agents, president wants some fired  (COMMENT: My Democrat GAO superiors fired me, that is, they forced me to retire, when I was 49 years old in 1997. My critics/opponents have always sided with my Democrat GAO superiors.)
https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-justice-department-receives-names-january-6-fbi-agents-2025-02-07/

NBC NEWS
— Democrat leaders ever-increasingly use courts to block Trump’s agenda
https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/donald-trump/trump-sweeping-agenda-hitting-legal-roadblocks-rcna191081
— Democrat leaders ever-increasingly promote more LGBTQ.
https://www.nbcnews.com/nbc-out/out-politics-and-policy/democratic-states-sue-trump-administration-order-halt-funding-gender-a-rcna191257

CBS NEWS
— Trolling Trump, Pritzker jokingly renames Lake Michigan, annexes Green Bay
https://www.cbsnews.com/chicago/news/jb-pritzker-donald-trump-joke-lake-michigan-lake-illinois-annex-green-bay/

NEW YORK TIMES
— Will Trump Be the President of Vice? (COMMENT: My critics/opponents promote vices big time. They are beyond furious that I stopped video gambling and the sale of pot in Wheaton.)
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/12/04/opinion/donald-trump-vice-voters.html
(FROM THE ARTICLE: While never a traditional Republican, Mr. Trump, in a second term, looks likely to go further than in his first in dumping many traditional Republican policies. In particular, Mr. Trump seems willing, even eager, to embrace vice. In his recent campaign, Mr. Trump embraced a strategy of social moderation. Not only did he loudly signal his opposition to hard-line anti-abortion policies, but he also endorsed marijuana legalization in Florida and was aligned with the Biden administration’s move to give pot a less restrictive legal status. And he embraced the crypto craze, starting his own cryptocurrency company. Mr. Trump’s moderation on pot, crypto — which some social conservatives see as closer to gambling than a serious investment — and other vices appears to have been part of a calculated effort to turn out young men, who, surveys suggest, helped propel him to victory. Pushing forward with liberalization in these areas could help establish vice voters as part of the new, post-Trump Republican coalition. But it would also have dangerous social consequences — consequences that could help fuel an already growing backlash against both Mr. Trump and addictive, harmful goods of all kinds. Mr. Trump’s cabinet picks indicate he could give these voters what they want. Take the issue of drugs. Mr. Kennedy, chosen to be the nation’s top health official, has supported federally legalizing marijuana. So has Matt Gaetz, Mr. Trump’s first, failed pick to be attorney general — and even with Mr. Gaetz’s name withdrawn, it signaled something striking, given that the attorney general can, after consulting with the health and human services secretary, reclassify controlled substances.)
— As Ground Shifts, ‘Flailing’ Democrats Struggle to Find Footing in Diversity Fight. President Trump’s aggressive moves against transgender rights and diversity, equity and inclusion programs have left the Democratic Party casting about for a strategy for how to respond.
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/02/08/us/politics/democrats-dei-trump.html
— Trump’s New Line of Attack Against the Media Gains Momentum. First Amendment experts say Mr. Trump’s lawsuits, based on an unproven legal theory, lack merit. But more could be on the way.
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/02/07/business/media/trump-media-lawsuits.html
— Beyond overwhelmingly, mainstream journalists and reporters are Democrats who a) promote the Democrat Party platform and help elect Democrat candidates and b) demonize, denigrate, and condemn the Republican Party platform and do everything they can to defeat Republican candidates.
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/02/07/business/media/trump-musk-attack-journalists.html
— Hegseth Uses His First Town Hall to Attack Diversity (COMMENT: To promote diversity is to promote discrimination against, if not hatred against, those who are conservative, Republican, American, White, male, older, Protestant, German American, and/or those whose ancestors have been in America for a long time.)
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/02/07/us/politics/hegseth-pentagon-town-hall.html
— Democrats ever-increasingly reject a) Trump’s election, b) the rule of law, and c) America.
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/02/08/opinion/trump-power-surrender.html
— Musk Wields Scythe on Federal Work Force, With Trump’s Full Blessing. The president defended Elon Musk’s role in seeking to slash budgets and cut payrolls as the young aides burrowing into federal agencies came under scrutiny. (COMMENT: My critics/opponents had no problem with my Democrat superiors wasting my career and forcing me to retire when I was 49 in 1997. In fact, they were and continue be overjoyed about it.)
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/02/07/us/politics/trump-musk-doge-pentagon.html

WASHINGTON POST
— Democrat leaders ever-increasingly promote more LGBTQ.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2025/02/07/trump-transgender-care-lawsuit/
— Democrat and RINO leaders use DEI to get rid of Republicans.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2025/02/07/trump-dei-federal-government-discrimination/

USA TODAY
— Federal employees on Trump’s buyout offer: ‘The bridge is burned.’ (COMMENT: I succumbed to my Democrat GAO superiors’ threats and took their early retirement “offer” when I was 49 years old in 1997. If I had not done that, I would not have been eligible for regular retirement for 6 years. They made it all too clear to me that if I tried to work for those 6 years, they would make my life a living hell. The least of which would be demotions and adverse transfers,)
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2025/02/08/why-federal-employees-accept-trumps-buyout/78295456007/

WALL STREET JOURNAL
— Secession From Illinois Is in the Air. Multiple counties want to leave, and Indiana says come on over.
https://www.wsj.com/opinion/illinois-counties-secession-vote-indiana-j-b-pritzker-todd-huston-5a93d624
— Politico Draws DOGE’s Ire, Signaling a Shakeout for Media with Major Government Customers. Elon Musk’s cost-cutting project flags more than $8 million in spending on the political publication. (COMMENT: GOPUSA ILLINOIS subscriptions are worth at least $5,000/year. But I send GOPUSA ILLINOIS newsletters to anyone who wants them free of charge, without any advertising, and with no donation requests.)
https://www.wsj.com/business/media/politico-draws-doges-ire-signaling-a-shakeout-for-media-with-major-government-customers-8b4db480

FORTUNE
— America’s enemies ever-increasingly use Affirmative Action and DEI to destroy America’s military.
https://fortune.com/well/2025/02/08/american-troops-fear-anxiety-trump-transgender-military-ban/

FORBES
— Bondi Targets DEI At Private Companies And Universities On Day One (COMMENT: Democrat and RINO employers use DEI a) to not hire Republicans and b) to get rid of their Republican employees.)
https://www.forbes.com/sites/conormurray/2025/02/06/ag-pam-bondi-targets-dei-at-private-companies-and-universities-on-day-one/
— Black History Month 2025: Moving Forward With Purpose And Impact (COMMENT: Democrat leaders promote Black History Month. My subordinate who my Democrat GAO superiors replaced me with was Black and had always led the office’s Black History Month events. He had less work experience than I had. He had less education than I had. He had one professional certification while I had six. He had no professional license like the one I had.)
https://www.forbes.com/sites/simonemorris/2025/02/07/black-history-month-2025-moving-forward-with-purpose-and-impact/

CLUB ALFA
— Dodge Charger Daytona wins 2025 MotorWeek Drivers’ Choice Award (COMMENT: I have ordered a 2025 Dodge Charger Daytona R/T EV.)
https://www.clubalfa.it/en/dodge-charger-daytona-and-ram-1500-win-the-2025-motorweek-drivers-choice-awards-16296
(FROM THE ARTICLE: John Davis, creator and host of MotorWeek, emphasized the uniqueness of the Charger Daytona: “This is the first time an all-electric model has won the Best Sport Coupe award. Dodge has kept its promise: buyers don’t have to compromise just because the classic HEMI V-8 has been replaced by electric propulsion.” Davis then added: “From the external design to the interior layout, to the virtual sounds that perfectly accompany its extraordinary acceleration, it almost feels like you can still hear the pushrod rhythm under the long, flat ’60s-style hood. The Charger Daytona is first and foremost an all-wheel-drive muscle car, and then an EV.”)

STELLANTIS
— All-new Dodge Charger Daytona Claims 2025 MotorWeek Drivers’ Choice Award
https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/all-new-dodge-charger-daytona-ram-1500-claim-2025-motorweek-drivers-choice-awards-302369687.html
(FROM THE PRESS RELEASE: The all-new Dodge Charger Daytona, the next generation of Dodge muscle, is available now at dealerships and represents the start of a multi-energy Dodge Charger lineup. . .”The Dodge Charger Daytona is our choice as Best Sport Coupe of the year, the first time an all-electric model has risen to that honor,” said John Davis, creator and host, MotorWeek. “From the outset, Dodge promised that buyers would not have to accept any compromises just because their hallmark muscle car traded in its classic HEMI® V-8 for electric propulsion. Indeed, from its exterior styling and interior layout, to its amazingly fitting virtual sounds audibly underscoring its rocket-like acceleration, you would be hard pressed not to think there was a chorus of pushrods still pulsating under the Charger’s long, wide, flat, ’60s era hood. When all is said and done, the Dodge Charger Daytona is an all-wheel-drive muscle car first and an EV second.)

RESTAURANT BUSINESS
— How restaurants are pushing back on Trump deportation sweeps (COMMENT: What percent of restaurant employees are illegals?)
https://www.restaurantbusinessonline.com/workforce/how-restaurants-are-pushing-back-trump-deportation-sweeps

WBZA
— Millions of retirees celebrated after former President Joe Biden signed the Social Security Fairness Act into law. This new legislation aims to increase Social Security benefits for over 3.2 million retirees and spouses by eliminating two controversial provisions. However, retirees expecting an immediate financial boost just learned there’s an unexpected delay in receiving their benefits. (COMMENT: My Social Security is dramatically less because I get a Civil Service Retirement System pension.)
https://wbza.co.in/new-social-security-law-increases-benefits-for-3-2-million-retirees/#google_vignette

CONGRESSIONAL BLACK CACUS
— Congressional Equality Caucus, Democratic Women’s Caucus, Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus, Congressional Hispanic Caucus, and Congressional Black Caucus charge Trump with undermining civil rights protections and enforcement for workers (COMMENT: My Democrat GAO superiors would not have and could not have forced me to retire when I was 49 year old in 1997 if I had been a Democrat, minority, female, veteran, and/or union member.)
https://cbc.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=2774

HUFFINGTON POST
— David Hogg Becomes Democratic National Committee’s First Gen Z Vice Chair (COMMENT: If the following would establish a Vice Chair position for Baby Boomers, I would apply for it: Illinois Republican Party, DuPage County Republican Central Committee, and Milton Township Republican Organization. I would also apply for Vice Chair positions for conservatives, Whites, males, Protestants, German Americans, and those whose ancestors have been in America for a long time.)
https://www.aol.com/david-hogg-becomes-democratic-national-223229994.html

PBS
— Trump says he’ll fire some FBI agents ‘very surgically’ (COMMENT: My Democrat GAO superiors fired me, that is, they forced me to retire, when I was 49 years old in 1997. My critics/opponents have always sided with my Democrat GAO superiors.)
https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/trump-says-hell-fire-some-fbi-agents-very-surgically

NEW YORKER
— Democrats ever-increasingly promote more illegal immigration.
https://www.newyorker.com/news/the-lede/immigration-enforcement-and-the-fears-of-the-undocumented-in-chicago
— Democrats and RINOs use DEI to get rid of Republicans.
https://www.newyorker.com/podcast/the-new-yorker-radio-hour/trumps-boogeyman-dei

NEW YORK MAGAZINE
— Trump Joins a Global War on ‘Gender Ideology’
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/02/08/magazine/gender-ideology-trump-orban.html

WORLD SOCIALIST WEB SITE
— White House claims 65,000 federal workers have accepted buyout offers. (COMMENT: What is your position on buyouts and early retirement offers? In 1993, when I was 45 years old, the Democrats who ran GAO “offered” $25,000 buyouts and early retirement to get rid of their older White male non-veteran employees who they had not promoted to GS-15, currently $163,749-$180,974/year. I was eligible because I had 25 years of federal service – 13 with GAO, 9 with IRS, and 3 with the Post Office. They succeeded in forcing me to retire in 1997 just before their “offer” expired. If I had not succumbed, I would not have been eligible for regular retirement until 2003. Things that I did that helped me survive 1993-1997 include a) earning a master’s degree in financial markets and trading in 1997, b) becoming a Certified Forensic Accountant in 1997, Financial Services Auditor in 1996, Government Financial Manager in 1994, Fraud Examiner in 1990, Internal Auditor and licensed CPA in 1981, and CPA in 1979, and c) earning master’s degrees in accounting from DePaul in 1980 and in business from Loyola in 1976. If I was still working for GAO, that is, if my Democrat GAO superiors had not forced me to retire when I was 49 in 1997, a) I would not have gotten $1.8 million in Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) pension payments since 1997 in today’s dollars and b) I would have paid into the CSRS $286,262 (7% of my salary) in today’s dollar.)
https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2025/02/08/hutq-f08.html

INDEPENDENT
— ‘We love Japan:’ Watch Trump welcome Japanese prime minister to White House
https://www.aol.com/love-japan-watch-trump-welcome-175225618.html

DAILY MAIL
— Trump pledges to ‘surgically’ remove ‘corrupt’ FBI agents including those on January 6 investigations (COMMENT: To remove me, my Democrat GAO superiors did not hint/imply/argue/shout that I was corrupt. But constructively, they hinted/implied/argued/shouted that because I opposed their political affiliation discrimination, reverse discrimination, age discrimination, religious discrimination, and national origin discrimination, I was a White supremacist, Nazi, KKK member, hater, racist, sexist, bigot, and even worse things. They had trouble hinting/implying/arguing/shouting that I was incompetent because I had a) become a licensed CPA, b) passed the CPA and Certified Internal Auditor examinations on my first attempt, c) earned four more job-related professional certifications, and d) earned three job-related master’s degrees. I should write about the aforesaid.)
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-14374021/donald-trump-fbi-agents-january-6.html

February 6, 2025

Anticipate/expect that Democrat leaders will ever-increasingly organize, promote, and report on more demonstrations against Trump. How successful have Democrat leaders been organizing, promoting, and reporting on protests against Trump in your county, township, municipality, and school district?

FROM ILLINOIS CENTER-LEFT SOURCES

ABC7
— Chicago-area experts question US right to make Gaza Strip ‘Riviera of the Middle East’
https://abc7chicago.com/post/trump-gaza-news-heading-springfield-advocate-palestinians-pres-says-he-wants-turn-strip-riviera/15869210/

NBC5
— Rallies against Trump administration held in Chicago, numerous other cities
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2EE5dLjYfZA
— Google scraps diversity ‘aspirations,’ citing role as federal contractor (COMMENT: Google has always steered everyone to websites a) that promote the Democrat Party platform and b) that demonize, denigrate, and condemn the Republican Party platform.)
https://www.nbcchicago.com/news/business/money-report/google-scraps-diversity-aspirations-citing-role-as-federal-contractor/3666768/

CBS2
— Palestinian Americans in Chicago area decry Trump’s plan for U.S. to “take over the Gaza Strip”
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/palestinian-americans-in-chicago-area-decry-trump-s-plan-for-u-s-to-take-over-the-gaza-strip/ar-AA1yucJ8
— Palestinian Americans in Chicago not pleased with President Trump’s Gaza takeover plan
https://www.yahoo.com/news/palestinian-americans-chicago-not-pleased-013600282.html

WGN9
— Hundreds rally against Trump administration’s Middle East, immigration policies
https://www.aol.com/hundreds-rally-against-trump-administration-225347771.html

FOX32
— Trump tariffs could hit Illinois hard, state treasurer warns
https://www.fox32chicago.com/news/trump-tariffs-illinois

CHICAGO SUN-TIMES
— Hundreds of patients skip appointments at Chicago health clinic amid deportation fears. At CommunityHealth, which serves a large immigrant population, prescriptions for diabetes, high blood pressure and other chronic conditions have been left on shelves since President Donald Trump took office.
https://chicago.suntimes.com/2025/02/05/chicago-health-clinic-patient-deportation-fear

DAILY HERALD
— Salvi: JB Pritzker’s ego could cost Illinois
https://www.dailyherald.com/20250206/columns/jb-pritzkers-ego-could-cost-illinois/

SPRINGFIELD STATE JOURNAL REGISTER
— Photos of Illinois protestors against actions of President Trump, Elon Musk
https://www.sj-r.com/picture-gallery/news/2025/02/05/hundreds-of-protestors-rally-at-illinois-capitol-against-trump-musk-see-photos/78260501007/

BLOOMINGTON PANTAGRAPH
— Protestors demonstrate against Trump policies outside Illinois Capitol
https://pantagraph.com/news/local/protestors-demonstrate-against-trump-policies-outside-illinois-capitol/video_241eda7c-9746-51d7-be96-80a0d75c5146.html
— Fear, anger, hope shown at ICE protest by students on ISU campus
https://pantagraph.com/news/local/government-politics/protest-isu-immigration-ice-students-bloomington-normal/article_a5c3fb6a-e3fb-11ef-919b-6b706dd71e8a.html

STATELINE
— Democrat leaders ever-increasingly use their illegals to promote more hatred against Republicans. Democrat leaders have declared a Second Civil War against Republicans. Illegals are soldiers in the Democrat Army.
https://www.mystateline.com/news/local-news/illinois-schools-communities-on-edge-with-rumors-of-ice-raids/

WAND TV
— State Rep. Abdelnasser Rashid (D-Berwyn) said President Donald Trump is enacting an ethnic cleansing after Trump called all Palestinians to leave Gaza. “Let’s call that what it is, ethnic cleansing,” Rashid said.
https://www.wandtv.com/community/donald-trump-is-calling-for-ethnic-cleansing-says-illinois-house-democrat/article_7629d996-e406-11ef-bf60-3f2a156d1588.html

WCIA
— Protesters converge on Illinois Capitol as tensions over Trump actions rise in the chamber
https://www.wcia.com/news/protesters-converge-on-illinois-capitol-as-tensions-over-trump-actions-rise-in-the-chamber/

WGLT
— Advocates ask Illinois lawmakers to increase funding for the unhoused in new budget (COMMENT: Under the Democrats and under the RINOs, homelessness will ever-increasingly increase.)
https://www.wglt.org/local-news/2025-02-04/advocates-ask-illinois-lawmakers-to-increase-funding-for-the-unhoused-in-new-budget

NPR ILLINOIS
— New attorney general moves to align DOJ with Trump’s priorities. (COMMENT: In Diersen v. GAO, Bush’s DOJ was aligned with GAO’s priorities of using Affirmative Action, DEI, up-or-out, and budget cuts to waste the careers of and to get rid of its Republican employees like me who were White, male, older, non-veteran, Protestant, German American, and/or had ancestors who had been in America for a long time.)
https://www.nprillinois.org/2025-02-05/new-attorney-general-moves-to-align-justice-department-with-trumps-priorities
— While I worked for the Democrats who ran the federal government for almost 30 years, they always glorified and praised those inside and outside of the federal government who promoted the Democrat Party platform.
https://www.nprillinois.org/2025-02-05/nsa-museum-covered-plaques-honoring-women-and-people-of-color-provoking-an-uproar

CENTRAL ILLINOIS PROUD
— Rand Paul knocks Trump Gaza takeover plan
https://www.centralillinoisproud.com/hill-politics/rand-paul-knocks-trump-gaza-takeover-plan-i-thought-we-voted-for-america-first/

CWB CHICAGO
— Bystanders slam gate on cops, cheerlead suspects during cross-town chase
https://cwbchicago.com/2025/02/bystanders-slam-gate-cops-cheerlead-suspects-during-cross-town-chase-video.html

CHALKBEAT CHICAGO
— Illinois lawmakers advance measure to untangle student test scores from teacher evaluations (COMMENT: My Democrat GAO superiors assigned me to supervise all their most problematic employees.)
https://www.chalkbeat.org/chicago/2025/02/05/illinois-lawmakers-propose-change-to-teacher-evaluation-requirements/

POLITICO ILLINOIS
— Battle lines in Springfield over Trump
https://www.politico.com/newsletters/illinois-playbook/2025/02/06/battle-lines-in-springfield-over-trump-00202827

CAPITOL FAX
— Morning briefing
https://capitolfax.com/2025/02/06/isabel%e2%80%99s-morning-briefing-451/

FROM ILLINOIS CENTER-RIGHT SOURCES

CENTER SQUARE ILLINOIS
— Chicago violent crime numbers up, arrests down across city
https://www.thecentersquare.com/illinois/article_a5a16d6c-e3d7-11ef-aa02-4b09cee8328e.html

GOPUSA ILLINOIS
— If Trump had been elected earlier with his new priorities, how might that have impacted you? If Trump had been elected earlier with his new priorities, my critics/opponents in the Milton Township Republican Organization, DuPage County Republican Central Committee, and Illinois Republican Party (IRP) might not have been able to a) remove me from the IRP State Convention Platform and Resolutions Committee in 2024, b) end my service as the Republican fundraiser for Wheaton Independence Day parades and fireworks in 2021, and c) take other adverse actions against me. If Trump had been elected earlier with his new priorities, my Democrat GAO superiors might not have been able to a) force me to take their early retirement “offer” when I was 49 years old in 1997, b) always rank me in the bottom half of my coworkers for pay for performance purposes, c) not promote me beyond GS-13 and delay my promotions, d) keep me off audits of IRS, and e) force me to take a $23,472/year (21%) pay cut in today’s dollars to transfer from IRS to GAO in 1980. If Trump had been elected earlier with his new priorities, my Democrat IRS superiors might not have been able to a) not promote me beyond GS-12, b) disallow my education deductions in 1978, and c) disallow my travel vouchers in 1974. If Trump had been elected earlier with his new priorities, my Democrat Post Office superiors might not have been able to a) force me to resign in 1969 and b) disallow my sick leave requests in 1969 and 1968. – Dave Diersen
http://www.gopillinois.com

MCHENRY COUNTY BLOG
— Non-Parental Relatives Caring for Children to Receive Same State Benefits as Foster Parents
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2025/02/05/non-parental-relatives-caring-for-children-to-receive-same-state-benefits-as-foster-parents/
— County Offers Paperless Permit Application
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2025/02/05/county-offers-paperless-permit-application/
— McHenry County Republicans Announce Darin Bailey as Lincoln Day Speaker on April 5th
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2025/02/05/mchenry-county-republicans-announce-darin-bailey-as-lincoln-day-speaker-on-april-5th/

ILLINOIS POLCY INSTITUTE
— Illinois 10th worst state for getting ahead. (COMMENT: Back in the good old days, I was able earn a bachelor’s degree, three master’s degrees, six professional certifications, and a professional license even though neither of my parents attended college, my father was only the first of my ancestors to earn a high school diploma, and my mother never attended high school.)
https://www.illinoispolicy.org/ranking-illinois-10th-worst-state-for-getting-ahead/

FROM NATIONAL CENTER-RIGHT SOURCES

WASHINGTON EXAMINER
— Tom Cotton credits bump in Army recruits to ‘Trump effect’
https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/senate/3311440/tom-cotton-credits-bump-army-recruits-trump-effect/

AMERICAN THINKER
— Colombia’s President Petro calls cocaine no different from whiskey, claims only gringo prejudice gives it a bad rap
https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2025/02/colombia_s_president_petro_calls_cocaine_no_different_from_whiskey_claims_only_gringo_prejudice_gives_it_a_bad_rap.html

FOX NEWS
— Detaining illegal immigrants at Guantanamo could result in legal challenges, slow deportations, experts say. The Trump administration this week began flying illegal immigrants to a military installation on the island.
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/detaining-illegal-immigrants-guantanamo-result-legal-challenges-slow-deportations-experts-say

TOWNHALL
— Mexico Begins Sending Troops to Southern Border After Trump Threatens Tariffs
https://townhall.com/tipsheet/jeff-charles/2025/02/05/mexico-begins-sending-troops-to-southern-border-n2651711
— DEI Woke Uniparty Deep State Collusion
https://townhall.com/columnists/alanjosephbauer/2025/02/06/dei-woke-uniparty-deep-state-collusion-n2651705#google_vignette

FROM NATIONAL CENTER-LEFT SOURCES

CBS NEWS
— ICE releases some migrant detainees as its detention facilities reach 109% capacity
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/ice-releases-some-migrant-detainees-detention-facilities-reach-109-percent-capacity/

ASSOCIATED PRESS
— Opposition lawmakers protest alleged mistreatment of Indian deportees by US
https://apnews.com/article/indian-illegal-immigration-protest-parliament-deportation-trump-90ae7999040196e3ce25dd3fa8e29137

NEWSWEEK
— 50501 Movement Fuels Anti-Trump Rallies Across the US
https://www.newsweek.com/anti-donald-trump-protests-50501-project-2025-live-updates-2026503

CNBC
— Have taken a pay cut? GAO audits IRS. In 1980, when I was 31 years old, my GAO superiors forced me to take a $23,472/year (21%) pay cut in today’s dollars to transfer from IRS to GAO, that is, I had to take a downgrade from GS-12 Step 5 to GS-9 Step 10. They used that to shout at everyone that GAO considered the following to be worthless my having: a) worked for IRS for almost 9 years, the last 5 1/2 years of which at the GS-12 Step 1-5 Levels, currently$99,069-$112,280/year, b) passed the CPA examination on my first attempt in 1979, c) almost completed the requirements for a master’s degree in accounting from DePaul, and d) earned an MBA from Loyola in 1976.
https://www.cnbc.com/2022/03/14/one-third-of-job-switchers-took-a-pay-cut-for-better-work-life-balance.html

NEW YORK TIMES
— Democrat leaders ever-increasingly promote more LGBTQ.
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/02/05/us/politics/trump-trans-athletes-executive-order.html
— Right-Wing Group Publishes ‘D.E.I. Watch List’ Targeting Federal Workers. The American Accountability Foundation list included names and photos of more than 50 people, many in programs aimed at improving the health of people of color. (COMMENT: Because of my bad demographics and because I complained about political affiliation discrimination, reverse discrimination, and age discrimination, my Democrat superiors in the federal government always had me on their purge lists.)
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/02/05/us/politics/dei-watchlist-federal-health-workers-cdc-nih.html
— As Trump Attacks D.E.I., Some on the Left Approve
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/02/06/business/economy/trump-dei-democrats-left-unions.html
— The Trump Crisis Deepens
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/02/06/opinion/trump-power-constitution.html

WASHINGTON POST
— Democrat leaders ever-increasingly promote more LGBTQ.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2025/02/05/transgender-students-trump-executive-order/

USA TODAY
— ‘People are feeling galvanized’: Anti-Trump protesters rally in cities across US
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2025/02/05/anti-trump-protests-50-states-updates/78239472007/
— Fear and uncertainty in federal workforce as Trump deadline arrives
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2025/02/06/trump-federal-workforce-fork-buyout-deadline-musk/78057990007/
— FRONT PAGE TOP OF FOLD WITH BIG PICTURE: Disabled federal workers fear for their jobs after Trump remarks (COMMENT: Their employees who my Democrat GAO superiors assigned me to supervise were Democrats and were many, most, if not virtually all of the following: minority, female, veteran, disabled, and/or had performance problems.)
https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/2025/02/05/disabled-federal-employees-dei-trump/77976332007/

THE SUN
— What were you doing 50 years ago? I was working for IRS in the Loop, taking graduate evening business courses at Loyola, living in my studio condo in downtown Chicago weekdays, living in my town home in University Park weekends, and owning a 1972 Corvette and a 1962 Chevy Bel Air.
https://news.thesunontheweb.com/articles/50-years-ago-220/

WALL STREET JOURNAL
— DEI and Disparate Impact. The next step in restoring meritocracy is to reject the theory that proportionate outcomes equal fairness.
https://www.wsj.com/opinion/dei-and-disparate-impact-next-step-toward-meritocracy-is-rejecting-this-theory-b65485ed
— Trump Considers Labeling Migrants a Measles, Tuberculosis Risk. Advisers have searched for disease threats that would merit emergency health law invoked during Trump’s first term for Covid-19 risk.
https://www.wsj.com/politics/policy/trump-asylum-seekers-measles-tuberculosis-risk-0e71a539

KIPLINGER
— Social Security Fairness Act Checklist: Six Things to Know. This Social Security Fairness Act checklist explains what public sector retirees can expect from SSFA, including how much more money they might receive. (COMMENT: The Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) has dramatically reduced my Social Security since 2010.)
https://www.kiplinger.com/retirement/social-security/social-security-fairness-act-checklist

PLAN ADVISER
— Potential Implementation Delays Face Social Security Fairness Act. Under the SSA’s current budget, the agency expects it could take more than one year to adjust benefits and pay all retroactive benefits. (COMMENT: The Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) has dramatically reduced my Social Security since 2010.)
https://www.planadviser.com/potential-implementation-delays-face-social-security-fairness-act/

NATIONAL LAW REVIEW
— Democrat and RINO employers use Affirmative Action and DEI a) to not hire Republicans and b) to get rid of their Republican employees.
https://natlawreview.com/article/employment-law-week-how-will-trumps-federal-changes-impact-employers-podcast-video

LEXOLOGY
— Requirements of the New Illinois Pay Transparency Amendment (COMMENT: Federal salaries have always been extremely transparent. GAO audits IRS. In 1980, when I was 31 years old, my IRS and GAO superiors, supervisors, coworkers, and subordinates shouted at everyone that GAO had forced me to take a $23,472/year (21%) pay cut in today’s dollars to transfer from IRS to GAO, that is, that I had to take a downgrade from GS-12 Step 5 to GS-9 Step 10. They used that to shout at everyone that GAO considered the following to be worthless: a) my having worked for IRS for almost 9 years, the last 5 1/2 years of which at the GS-12 Step 1-5 Levels, currently $99,069-$112,280/year, b) my having passed the CPA examination on my first attempt in 1979, c) my having almost completed the requirements for a master’s degree in accounting from DePaul, and d) my having earned an MBA from Loyola in 1976.)
https://www.lexology.com/library/detail.aspx?g=2cd9088a-1c7c-45d4-adec-57a619e1b71b

NPR
— Democrat leaders charge ICE with arresting “scores of migrants in the U.S. who have no criminal records.”
https://www.npr.org/2025/02/04/nx-s1-5282379/trumps-mass-deportation-arrests-of-non-criminal-immigrants-no-criminal-record

POLITICO
— Musk aims to hobble federal workers ahead of ‘buyout’ deadline. Countless staffers in the government are now grappling with what to do. (COMMENT: I was a federal worker for almost 30 years.)
https://www.politico.com/news/2025/02/06/federal-workers-musk-buyout-fears-00202768

AXIOS
— Thousands across the U.S. protest Trump and Musk’s policies
https://www.axios.com/2025/02/05/photos-protest-trump-admin-50501

CANADIAN PRESS
— Protests against Trump and Project 2025 are planned in cities across the US
https://www.msn.com/en-ca/news/world/protesters-in-cities-across-the-us-rally-against-trump-s-policies-project-2025-and-elon-musk/ar-AA1yr7tC

DAILY MAIL
— Anti-Donald Trump and Elon Musk protests pop up across the country
https://www.msn.com/en-nz/news/other/anti-donald-trump-and-elon-musk-protests-pop-up-across-the-country/vi-AA1yu5Nv

GUARDIAN
— US military aircraft transports 104 deported people to India. Plane departed Texas and landed in Amritsar as Washington prepares to welcome Indian PM Narendra Modi.
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/feb/05/military-flight-india-immigration
— JANUARY 30, 2019 FLASKBACK: ‘How do they expect to run without us?’ Tesla accused of axing key staff to cut costs. Electric car firm slashed 7% of workforce this month and ex-employees say more experienced staff were targeted. (COMMEMT: When the Democrats who ran GAO in 1997 forced me to retire, they flushed down their toilets the experience that I had gained a) working for GAO since 1980, b) working for IRS 1971-1980, c) earning master’s degrees in 1997 (finance), 1980 (accounting), and 1976 (business), d) earning job-related professional certifications in 1997 (forensic accounting), 1996 (financial services auditing), 1994 (government financial management), 1990 (fraud examination), 1981 (internal auditing), and 1979 (accounting), and e) earning a job-related professional license in 1981 (CPA).)
https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2019/jan/30/tesla-factory-elon-musk-layoffs-company

ECONOMIC TIMES
— ‘Deport Elon, DOGE is not legit’: Protests erupt across US against Trump, Tesla CEO and Project 2025
https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/international/global-trends/us-news-protests-against-trump-elon-musk-deport-elon-doge-is-not-legit-protests-erupt-across-us-against-trump-tesla-ceo-and-project-2025-usaid/articleshow/117978132.cms

BUSINESS STANDARD
— ‘Stop attack on democracy’: Protesters rally against Trump, Musk across US
https://www.business-standard.com/world-news/us-protests-against-trump-immigration-rights-transgender-gaza-2025-125020600688_1.html

TIMES OF INDIA
— Why the rich risk being illegals in America
https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/blogs/toi-edit-page/why-the-rich-risk-being-illegals-in-america/

February 3, 2025

FROM ILLINOIS CENTER-LEFT SOURCES

ABC7
— Chicago businesses to close for ‘Day Without Immigrants’ protest: ‘Show how strong we are’ (COMMENT: To promote their illegals, Democrat and RINO leaders ever-increasingly lump illegal immigrants in with legal immigrants. Republicans oppose illegal immigration, but promote legal immigration.)
https://abc7chicago.com/post/day-immigrants-protest-chicago-business-owners-close-shops-monday-social-media-campaign-calls-shopping-strike/15858588/

CHICAGO TRIBUNE
— FRONT PAGE TOP OF FOLD WITH BIG PICTURE: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly promote Durbin
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/02/03/us-sen-dick-durbins-latest-role-leading-democrats-on-judging-president-trumps-top-nominees/
— Democrat leaders ever-increasingly demonize, denigrate, and condemn school choice.
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/02/03/opinion-school-choice-drains-public-resources-illinios/
— Do Chicago voters know there are 1,900 places to buy hemp and get high?
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/02/03/editorial-hemp-brandon-johnson-regulation/
— Heading into budget season, Gov. JB Pritzker faces major challenge to show ‘Illinois can govern itself’
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/02/03/heading-into-budget-season-gov-jb-pritzker-faces-major-challenge-to-show-illinois-can-govern-itself/

DAILY HERALD
— FRONT PAGE TOP OF FOLD WITH BIG PICTURE: The Chicago Auto Show is back Saturday
https://www.dailyherald.com/20250202/transportation/start-your-engines-jeep-is-back-and-hybrids-are-hot-at-the-chicago-auto-show/

JOURNAL COURIER
— Hysterical rhetoric on Trump’s funding pause obscures historically important issue
https://www.myjournalcourier.com/opinion/article/hysterical-rhetoric-obscures-important-issue-20096012.php

NORTHERN PUBLIC RADIO
— Democrats promote more illegal immigration in Elgin
https://www.northernpublicradio.org/illinois/2025-02-02/hundreds-gather-in-elgin-to-rally-against-mass-deportations

NPR ILLINOIS
— How safe is your weed? Patchy regulations may leave contaminants in the weed supply.
https://www.nprillinois.org/2025-02-03/how-safe-is-your-weed-patchy-regulations-may-leave-contaminants-in-the-weed-supply

ADVANTAGE NEWS
— State Rep. David Friess, R-Red Bud, responds to Kinzinger’s criticism of reimbursing military members dismissed over COVID vaccine refusal (COMMENT: My Democrat GAO superiors dismissed me when I was 49 years old in 1997 because in 1988 I became an active member in a class action lawsuit that charged them with reverse discrimination, age discrimination, and retaliation. Because of that, I should get reimbursed. I suggest $2.4 million, that is $4.2 million in backpay in today’s dollars minus the $1.8 million in pension payments that I have received in today’s dollars.)
https://www.advantagenews.com/news/local/lawmaker-responds-to-kinzinger-s-criticism-of-reimbursing-military-members-dismissed-over-covid-vaccine-refusal/article_3bd2ba94-dfea-11ef-a28e-d3e4e54c1fc9.html
(FROM THE ARTICLE: Friess, a veteran, agrees that servicemen should be reinstated and questioned the necessity of healthy servicemen needing to get the COVID vaccine. . .Friess confirmed service members do have to make sure that their shots are up to date before they deploy. . .Friess said there might be some resentment from military members who were forced to get the COVID vaccine. “What are the other military members going to say? How are they going to feel about it? And, and I think it’s going to be mixed. I think you’re going to have some people say, ‘yeah, [this was the] way to go,’ and people that might be resentful,” said Friess. Friess pointed out that during government shutdowns, non-essential federal employees go home and that they don’t get paid during the shutdown, but always receive back pay. “Now they don’t get paid during that government shutdown, but they always get back pay. They get compensated because it’s no fault of their own. So, is that [giving them back pay] right? Probably not. There’s a bright line on this,” said Friess. About 8,000 troops were booted from the military for refusing COVID-19 vaccinations. The order, signed by Trump, paves the way for them to be reinstated in the military with back pay.)

POLITICO ILLINOIS
— Democrat leaders ever-increasingly promote more LGBTQ.
https://www.politico.com/newsletters/illinois-playbook/2025/02/03/trumps-trans-military-ban-sparks-alarm-00202050

CAPITOL FAX
— Morning briefing
https://capitolfax.com/2025/02/03/isabel%e2%80%99s-morning-briefing-448/

FROM ILLINOIS CENTER-RIGHT SOURCES

WIRE POINTS
— No matter what Pritzker or the Tribune says, Illinois’ NAEP education results are abysmal
https://wirepoints.org/no-matter-what-pritzker-or-the-tribune-says-illinois-naep-education-results-are-abysmal-wirepoints/
— Trump is showing he cares more about safe streets in Illinois than Gov. Pritzker does
https://wirepoints.org/trumps-showing-he-cares-more-about-safe-streets-in-illinois-than-gov-pritzker-does-wirepoints-on-with-jeff-daly-of-wzus-decatur-radio/

MCHENRY CUNTY BLOG
— Legislators at County Board Meeting
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2025/02/02/legislators-at-county-board-meeting/
— Does DEI -> National Idiocy?
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2025/02/02/does-dei-national-idiocy/

GOPUSA ILLINOIS
— What are the main things that distinguish you from your critics/opponents? Overwhelmingly, my critics/opponents had parents who had way more money than my parents had. They did not have to work their way through college like I had to. Their parents bought them cars and paid for their college expenses. Further, they benefitted from Affirmative Action (AA) and DEI or want to benefit from AA and DEI. Further, they look down on if not despise if not hate Protestants, German Americans, and/or those whose ancestors have been in America longer than their ancestors. I should write about my critics/opponents and the pretexts they used to take big adverse actions against me. – Dave Diersen
http://www.gopillinois.com
— If Trump had been elected earlier, how would that have impacted your career? Democrats run the federal government. Democrats hate Trump. Because of my demographics, if Trump had been elected before 1980, the Democrats who ran GAO back then would not have hired me in 1980, and if they had, they would not have promoted me in 1986 and they would have forced me to retire much sooner. If Trump had been elected before 1971, the Democrats who ran IRS back then would not have hired me in 1971, and if they had, they would not have promoted me in 1972, 1973, and 1975. If Trump had been elected before 1966, the Democrats who ran the Post Office back then would not have hired me in 1966, and if they had, they would have forced me to resign much sooner. However, if Trump had been elected before 1971, EEOC would not have forced Oldsmobile to stop hiring Whites and Oldsmobile would not have withdrawn the job offer that I had accepted. – Dave Diersen
http://www.gopillinois.com

MCHENRY COUNTY BLOG
— Consolidation of Marengo FPD, Rescue District, and Union Fire Protection District Being Given Serious Consideration
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2025/02/03/consolidation-of-marengo-fpd-rescue-district-and-union-fire-protection-district-being-given-serious-consideration/
— McHenry County College Awarded $118,788 for Mental Health Support
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2025/02/03/mchenry-county-college-awarded-118788-for-mental-health-support/
— Consolidation of Marengo FPD, Rescue District, and Union Fire Protection District Being Given Serious Consideration
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2025/02/03/consolidation-of-marengo-fpd-rescue-district-and-union-fire-protection-district-being-given-serious-consideration/
— Woodstock Willie Makes Front Page of Chicago Tribune, TV, Even Pittsburgh Paper
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2025/02/03/woodstock-willie-makes-front-page-of-chicago-tribune/

FROM NATIONAL CENTER-RIGHT SOURCES

WASHINGTON TIMES
— Crying and coping: Left struggles with Trump’s aggressiveness
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2025/feb/2/crying-coping-left-struggles-donald-trump-aggressi/

NEW YORK POST
— Thousands protest against Trump’s immigration crackdown, blocking traffic on Los Angeles freeway (COMMENT: Los Angeles today, your municipality tomorrow.)
https://nypost.com/2025/02/02/us-news/protesters-against-trumps-immigration-crackdown-block-los-angeles-freeway/
— The left’s lies just keep growing — even as each of them gets debunked
https://nypost.com/2025/02/02/opinion/the-lefts-lies-keep-just-growing-even-as-each-of-them-gets-debunked/

AMERICAN REATNESS
— Ten Problems with DEI That Frighten the Public. DEI policies are facing scrutiny amid recent disasters, raising concerns about their impact on competence, meritocracy, and public safety.
https://amgreatness.com/2025/02/03/the-problems-with-dei-that-frighten-the-public/
(FROM THE ARTICLE: The first issue is whether hiring, retention, and promotion in the airline industry or the military is not fully meritocratic. That is, were personnel hired on the basis of their exhibited superior education, practical experience, and superb scores on relevant examinations in matters relating to air travel? Or were they instead passed over because of their race, gender, or sexual orientation? Was the shortage of controllers a direct result not of an unqualified pool of applicants but rather because of racial restrictions place upon it to reduce its size? Second, were the promoters of DEI confident that they could argue that “diversity, equity, and inclusion” were as important criteria for the operation of a complex aircraft system as the past traditional criteria that had qualified air traffic controllers, pilots, and administrators? Not only did DEI considerations often supersede past traditional meritocratic requirements for employment, but DEI champions had also argued that “diversity” was either as important to, or more important than, traditional hiring and retention evaluations. The answers to these first two questions make it incumbent to ask further whether DEI played a role in the Washington, D.C., crash, similar to how it may have in the Los Angeles wildfires. It is not racist, sexist, or homophobic to ask such legitimate questions, especially because advocates themselves so often give more attention and emphasis to their race, gender, and sexual orientation than their assumed impressive expertise, proven experience, and superior education. In other words, had one’s race, sex, or orientation been incidental to employment rather than essential, such questions from the public might never have arisen. Finally, what are the problems with DEI that have not just lost its support but put fear into the public that, like the Russian commissar system of old, it has the potential to undermine the very sinews of a sophisticated, complex society? . .In sum, because of these inconsistencies, Donald Trump may well be able to end DEI with a wave of an executive order—simply because its foundations were always built of sand and thus any bold push would knock over the entire shaky edifice.)

BACON’S REBELLION
— Four Anti-School Choice Myths Exploded (COMMENT: Since 1953 when my parents sent me to Trinity Lutheran Grade School in Crete, my critics/opponents have used that against me. They have outrageously/disgustingly/falsely used that to hint/imply/argue/shout that my parents could do that because they were filthy rich. My father never earned more than $50,000/year in today’s dollars and during the 1950s, it was less. He almost always worked second jobs to pay the family’s bills. My mother never attended high school. I had to work my way through college.)
https://www.baconsrebellion.com/four-anti-school-choice-myths-explored-exploded/

BREITBART
— Lady Gaga Preaches Politics at Grammys: ‘Trans People Are Not Invisible’
https://www.breitbart.com/entertainment/2025/02/02/lady-gaga-at-grammys-trans-people-are-not-invisible-queer-community-deserves-to-be-lifted-up/
— Wall St. Journal Scoffs as ‘Dumb’ Trump Uses Tariffs to Reduce American Drug-Deaths
https://www.breitbart.com/immigration/2025/02/02/wall-st-journal-sneers-at-trump-using-tariffs-to-reduce-opioid-deaths/

COLLEGE FIX
— Florida State University to remove general education designation from hundreds of CRT-infused courses (COMMENT: Back in the 1960s, 1970s, and 1990s, I took many courses to earn a bachelor’s degree and three master’s degrees. But because virtually all of those courses were in business, accounting, and finance, few pushed the Democrat Party platform.)
https://www.thecollegefix.com/florida-state-u-to-remove-general-education-designation-from-hundreds-of-crt-infused-courses/

EPOCH TIMES
— Panama Says It Will Not Renew ‘Belt and Road’ Agreement With China After Rubio Visit
https://www.theepochtimes.com/world/panama-says-it-will-not-renew-belt-and-road-agreement-with-china-5803181

FEDERALIST
— 5 Shocking Reasons Trump Should Exit The U.N. Now
https://thefederalist.com/2025/02/03/5-shocking-reasons-trump-should-exit-the-u-n-now/

FEDERATION FOR AMERICAN IMMIGRATION REFORM
— H-1B Visas: Cheap Foreign Labor Versus the American Worker (COMMENT: If there had been as many immigrants when I was young as there are today, they would have gotten the jobs that I got, and if not that, my wages would have been lower because immigrants drive wages down. My critics/opponents cannot say that because they did not have to work their way through college because their parents were wealthy.)
https://www.fairus.org/issue/h-1b-visas-cheap-foreign-labor-versus-american-worker

FOX NEWS
— Trump order restricting sex-change procedures for minors in line with ‘do no harm,’ doctor says. ‘This fight only ends when children are no longer being abused on our soil. Ever,’ detransitioner Chloe Cole said.
https://www.foxnews.com/media/trump-order-restricting-sex-change-procedures-minors-line-do-no-harm-doctor-says
— Trump defends tariffs, accuses Canada of being ‘very abusive of the United States’: Trump authorized his tariffs against China, Canada and Mexico on Saturday.
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/trump-defends-tariffs-accuses-canada-being-very-abusive-united-states-video
— Musk rips ‘fraudulent’ Treasury handouts as reports mount DOGE has access to federal payment system
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/musk-rips-fraudulent-treasury-payments-reports-mount-doge-has-access-federal-payment-system

TUBERVILLE
— Tuberville moves to prioritize American workers over ‘cheap’ foreign labor (COMMENT: If there had been as many immigrants when I was young as there are today, they would have gotten the jobs that I got, and if not that, my wages would have been lower because immigrants drive wages down. My critics/opponents cannot say that because they did not have to work their way through college because their parents were wealthy.)
https://www.tuberville.senate.gov/newsroom/in-the-news/tuberville-moves-to-prioritize-american-workers-over-cheap-foreign-labor-combat-job-outsourcing/

FROM NATIONAL CENTER-LEFT SOURCES

NBC NEWS
— Democrat leaders ever-increasingly use the Constitution’s “equal protection” guarantee a) to give more preference to Democrats and b) to destroy Republicans.
https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/donald-trump/trump-conservatives-reignite-battle-race-constitution-rcna189842

CNN
— Democrat and RINO leaders ever-increasingly promote more illegal immigration
https://www.wfft.com/news/national/this-family-of-ten-trekked-from-venezuela-in-hopes-of-asylum-in-america-now-they/article_36b1c546-9826-52b8-8c62-a9bf81b1eb3d.html

ASSOCIATED PRESS
— American dream out of reach (COMMENT: I was able to buy new cars when I was 17, 19, 20, 23, 25, 29, etc. and real estate when I was 24, 25, 27, 29, and 35. But I doubt that I would be able to do that today at those ages.)
https://www.gjsentinel.com/with-home-prices-and-mortgage-rates-high-many-families-find-the-american-dream-out-of/article_6bc4119e-f033-51a4-aedb-66006acfee6d.html

MSN
— Secret Service Faces Lawsuit Over DEI Standards
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/secret-service-faces-lawsuit-over-dei-standards/ss-AA1rAqbc?ocid=st2

NEW YORK TIMES
— Many Americans Say the Democratic Party Does Not Share Their Priorities. A poll from The New York Times and Ipsos found that Americans believe abortion, L.G.B.T.Q. issues and climate change concern Democrats more than the cost of living.
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/02/02/us/democrats-ipsos-poll-abortion-lgbt.html
— To achieve Affirmative Action (AA) and DEI quotas, goals, and targets, Democrat and RINO leaders ever-increasingly lower standards big time. Democrat and RINO leaders use AA and DEI to get rid of Republicans. That 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. All my coworkers who my Democrat superiors in the federal government promoted over me were Democrats who a) had less work experience than I had, had less education than I had, had no professional certifications or fewer than I had, and/or had no professional license like the one I had and/or b) were minority, female, and/or younger. I should write about that.
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/02/03/us/politics/trump-diversity-racism.html
— NASA Astronaut Recruitment Faces Trump’s Moves Against D.E.I.  The government space agency has vocally promoted diversity and inclusion for decades, even during the first Trump administration. (COMMENT: To promote diversity is to discriminate against those who are conservative, Republican, American, White, male. older, Protestant, German American, and/or have ancestors who have been in America for a long time.)
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/02/03/science/nasa-astronauts-dei-trump.html
— The more of the following that you are, the faster that Democrat leaders get rid of you: conservative, Republican, American, White, male. older, non-veteran, Protestant, German American, and/or have ancestors who have been in America for a long time. Because I am all of the aforesaid, I would not have survived for almost 9 years working for the Democrats who ran IRS 1971-1980 if I had not a) earned an MBA in 1976, b) passed the CPA examination on my first attempt in 1979, and c) almost completed the requirements for a master’s degree in accounting. Because I am all of the aforesaid, I would not have survived for almost 18 years working for the Democrats who ran GAO 1980-1997 if I had not a) earned a master’s degree in accounting in 1980, b) passed the Certified Internal Auditor examination on my first attempt and became a licensed CPA in 1981, c) earned four more job-related professional certifications in 1990, 1994, 1996, and 1997, and d) earned a master’s degree in financial markets and trading in 1997.)
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/02/03/opinion/transgender-military-ban-trump.html

WASHINGTON POST
— Democrat leaders ever-increasingly use religious leaders to promote more hatred against Trump
https://www.washingtonpost.com/religion/2025/02/02/bishop-budde-national-cathedral-trump/
— Democrat leaders ever-increasing promote more illegal immigration and LGBTQ.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2025/02/03/trump-immigrant-children-transgender/

USA TODAY
— Transgender care on kids is dangerous. Trump was right to block it.
https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/columnist/2025/02/03/trump-bans-funding-gender-surgery-transitioning-kids/78051941007/

WALL STREET JOURNAL
— Democratic States Are Wards of Washington. There’s a reason for the panic over the Trump White House’s temporary federal spending pause. (COMMENT: Ever-increasingly, Democrats take money away from Republicans and give it to Democrats.)
https://www.wsj.com/opinion/democratic-states-are-wards-of-washington-federal-spending-dollars-states-cities-92ace121
— Democrats Have a New Leader Ken Martin, but Haven’t Come to Grips With Failure. Cracks emerge as party confronts deep unpopularity; ‘we utilize identity to break ourselves apart.
https://www.wsj.com/politics/democrats-have-a-new-leader-but-havent-come-to-grips-with-failure-ee77234c
— Rich Countries Are Becoming Addicted to Cheap Labor (COMMENT: If there had been as many immigrants when I was young as there are today, they would have gotten the jobs that I got, and if not that, my wages would have been lower because immigrants drive wages down. My critics/opponents cannot say that because they did not have to work their way through college because their parents were wealthy.)
https://www.wsj.com/economy/business-immigrant-low-skilled-labor-addiction-bf009a83

FORTUNE
— Tesla Accused of Using Cheap Foreign Labor in Silicon Valley (COMMENT: If there had been as many immigrants when I was young as there are today, they would have gotten the jobs that I got, and if not that, my wages would have been lower because immigrants drive wages down. My critics/opponents cannot say that because they did not have to work their way through college because their parents were wealthy.)
https://fortune.com/2016/05/16/tesla-cheap-labor/

FORBES
— Why Job Benefits Are Disappearing From 2025 Hiring Posts (COMMENT: The federal government does not reimburse its employees’ tuition expenses for job-related graduate courses except for small token amounts in some cases. My Democrat IRS superiors used that to outrageously/disgustingly/falsely                                                          hint/imply/argue/shout that the graduate business and accounting courses that I deducted a) did not relate to my job duties, b) did not maintain or improve my job skills, c) were taken my me to get a job in the private sector, and d) qualified me for a new trade or business. They outrageously/disgustingly/falsely did that knowing full-well that their employee manual encouraged me to take those courses and ignoring my position descriptions and graduate school applications.)
https://www.forbes.com/sites/cynthiapong/2025/01/19/why-job-benefits-are-disappearing-from-2025-hiring-posts/
(FROM THE ARTICLE: By proactively detailing what makes a role worthwhile—whether that’s flexible scheduling, mental health support, or tuition reimbursement—employers can still differentiate themselves without overwhelming applicants with a laundry list of minor perks.)
— How many marginalized groups are you a member of? My critics/opponents stress that I am not a member of any marginalized group. I am not liberal, Democrat, minority, female, younger, poor, unmarried, LGBTQ, disabled, veteran, non-Protestant, non-German American, have ancestors who have not been in America for a long time, or citizen of a foreign country. According to my critics/opponents, because I am not a member of any marginalized group, I should pay the price of Affirmative Action and DEI big time.)
https://www.forbes.com/sites/genacox/2025/02/02/4-ways-respect-powers-thriving-teams-leadership-and-business-success/
https://www.forbes.com/sites/juliekratz/2025/02/02/tired-of-performative-allyship-10-phrases-inclusive-leaders-use/

BLOOMBERG
— Cheap Foreign Labor Soars in Canada as Young Workers Are Left Jobless (COMMENT: Canada today, America tomorrow. If there had been as many immigrants when I was young as there are today, they would have gotten the jobs that I got, and if not that, my wages would have been lower because immigrants drive wages down. My critics/opponents cannot say that because they did not have to work their way through college because their parents were wealthy.)
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-08-12/cheap-foreign-labor-soars-in-canada-as-young-workers-are-left-jobless
— Canada Must End Reliance on Cheap Foreign Labor, Minister Says (COMMENT: Canada today, America tomorrow. If there had been as many immigrants when I was young as there are today, they would have gotten the jobs that I got, and if not that, my wages would have been lower because immigrants drive wages down. My critics/opponents cannot say that because they did not have to work their way through college because their parents were wealthy.)
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-02-06/canada-must-end-reliance-on-cheap-foreign-labor-minister-says
https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/business/2024/08/06/canada-moves-to-shrink-low-wage-foreign-worker-program-after-explosive-growth/

BLOOMBERG LAW
— Trump’s Deportation Plans Get Boost From Actions in Red States (COMMENT: Trump’s deportation plans are obstructed in blue states.)
https://news.bgov.com/bloomberg-government-news/trumps-deportation-plans-get-boost-from-actions-in-red-states

WIRED
— The Young, Inexperienced Engineers Aiding Elon Musk’s Government Takeover. Engineers between 19 and 24, most linked to Musk’s companies, are playing a key role as he seizes control of federal infrastructure. (COMMENT: Just kidding, but will Musk ask for my advice on anything? GAO fights fraud, waste, and abuse in the federal government. I worked for GAO for almost 18 years, the last 11 years of which at the GS-13 Step 1-10 levels, currently $117,807-$153,151/year. I have three job-related master’s degrees, six job-related professional certifications, and a job-related professional license. Further, I worked for IRS for almost 9 years, the last 5 1/2 years of which at the GS-12 Step 1-5 Levels, currently $99,069-$112,280/year.)
https://www.wired.com/story/elon-musk-government-young-engineers/
(FROM THE ARTICLE: WIRED has identified six young men—all apparently between the ages of 19 and 24, according to public databases, their online presences, and other records—who have little to no government experience and are now playing critical roles in Musk’s so-called Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) project, tasked by executive order with “modernizing Federal technology and software to maximize governmental efficiency and productivity.” The engineers all hold nebulous job titles within DOGE, and at least one appears to be working as a volunteer.)

SCHOLARSHIPS
— Did you get scholarships? I did not. My critics/opponents have always used that to hint/imply/argue/shout a) that I am academically deficient and b) that my parents were filthy rich. In my defense, I worked my way through college and then earned three master’s degrees, six professional certifications, and a professional license.
https://www.scholarships.com/financial-aid/college-scholarships/scholarships-by-type/full-tuition-scholarships

NATIONAL POST
— Fines issued for abusing Canada’s temporary foreign worker program rise 36% (COMMENT: Canada today, America tomorrow. If there had been as many immigrants when I was young as there are today, they would have gotten the jobs that I got, and if not that, my wages would have been lower because immigrants drive wages down. My critics/opponents cannot say that because they did not have to work their way through college because their parents were wealthy.)
https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/fines-issued-for-abusing-canadas-temporary-foreign-worker-program-rise-36

GOVERNMENT EXECUTIVE
— Trump to again freeze federal hiring. The new president will allow some exceptions, but says the freeze is necessary to root out “useless and overpaid” activists from federal rolls. (COMMENT: While I worked for the Democrats that ran GAO 1980-1997, the agency was almost always under Republican-caused hiring and promotion freezes. My Democrat GAO superiors punished me severely for that. Who does Trump want the next Comptroller General to be, that is, who does Trump want the next head of GAO to be?)
https://www.govexec.com/workforce/2025/01/trump-again-freeze-federal-hiring/402335/
(FROM THE ARTICLE: The Government Accountability Office raised concerns about the impact of Trump’s and previous hiring freezes, saying they were not effective and exacerbate existing workforce problems. Such freezes, GAO said, cause agencies to hire contractors and temporary staff. “If you want to reduce the workforce, you have to reduce the functions they’re doing,” GAO chief Gene Dodaro told Congress in 2017. “And you have to be able to realign the workforce.” GAO also found that agencies with exceptions, such as the Veterans Affairs Department that allowed the hiring of doctors and nurses to continue, still experienced fallout as they suffered from a lack of support staff.  When Trump ended the freeze, he tasked agencies to create plans to reshape themselves. Few of those plans were ever brought into effect as they ran headlong into congressional resistance. White House officials later refuted that the overall plans were intended to reduce federal workforce personnel. Some federal agencies have already implemented hiring restrictions due to budget caps and the short-term funding mechanism under which they are currently operating.)

TIMES
— US social mobility is overhyped (COMMENT: I was able to earn three master’s degrees, six professional certifications, and a professional license even though a) neither of my parents attended college, b) my father was only the first of my ancestors to earn a high school diploma, c) my mother never attended high school, d) my ACT score was only 24, e) I only just barely made it into the upper 20% of high school class, and f) I had to work my way through college.)
https://www.thetimes.com/comment/columnists/article/brutal-truth-us-social-mobility-is-overhyped-xg3dqvg7k

January 31, 2025 Evening Edition

FROM ILLINOIS CENTER-LEFT SOURCES

ABC7
— Federal appeals court strikes down ban on handgun sales to teens. The repealed regulation keeping teens from buying guns originated in 1968.
https://abc7chicago.com/post/gun-laws-fifth-circuit-court-appeals-rules-allow-18-year-olds-buy-handguns-strikes-down-landmark-control-regulation/15850192/
— Hate-filled Trump-hating Trump-haters promote Durbin
https://abc7chicago.com/post/illinois-senator-dick-durbin-weighs-president-trumps-2nd-week-office-executive-orders-dc-plane-crash-ice-raids-more/15852460/

NBC5
— Real ID appointments filling up ‘fast.’ Tip to know if you want to secure your spot. Appointments to get a Real ID are filling up fast, the Illinois Secretary of State’s office says.
https://www.nbcchicago.com/news/local/real-id-appointments-filling-up-fast-tip-to-know-if-you-want-to-secure-your-spot/3661786/

CBS2
— Pritzker bans convicted Jan. 6 participants from consideration for state jobs (COMMENT: After my Democrat GAO superiors forced me to retire when I was 49 years old in 1997, they did everything that they could to ban me from getting employment appropriate for my work experience, education, professional certifications, and professional license.)
https://www.cbsnews.com/chicago/news/pritzker-bans-convicted-jan-6-participants-state-jobs/
— Veteran whose 30-year-old car couldn’t pass emissions test gets part he needed from Good Samaritan (COMMENT: A big reason why I traded in my 2003 Chevy Caviler LS in 2021 was that car mechanics could not get its check engine light to go off.)
https://www.cbsnews.com/chicago/news/carol-stream-veteran-car-emissions-test-repair-good-samaritan/
— Surveillance video shows Secret Service agents being turned away from Chicago school (COMMENT: One of my best friends during the 1960s and 1970s was a Secret Service Agent. Democrats ever-increasing put their hatred against Trump above everything else.)
https://www.cbsnews.com/chicago/news/hamline-elementary-surveillance-video-secret-service-agents/


FOX32
— Illinois AG joins coalition condemning Trump’s anti-DEI actions.
Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul joined 11 other AGs condemning President Trump. (COMMENT: Democrats use DEI to get rid of Republicans.)
https://www.fox32chicago.com/video/1586168
— Dolton, Thornton Township leaders call on Pritzker and others to remove Tiffany Henyard
https://www.fox32chicago.com/news/dolton-thornton-township-leaders-pritzker-remove-tiffany-henyard
— Bipartisan lawmakers call for more air traffic controllers in wake of D.C. tragedy (COMMENT: Air traffic control staffing was involved in an audit of FAA that I worked on for GAO in the early 1980s.)
https://www.fox32chicago.com/news/bipartisan-lawmakers-air-traffic-controllers-dc-tragedy
— Duckworth criticizes Sen. Tommy Tuberville over military promotion holds (COMMENT: While I worked for the Democrats who ran GAO for almost 30 years, the agency was almost always under Republican-led hiring freezes and/or promotion freezes.)
https://www.fox32chicago.com/video/1586063

WGN9
— Air traffic controllers union responds to Trump’s DEI attacks (COMMENT: Air traffic control staffing was involved in an audit of FAA that I worked on for GAO in the early 1980s.)
https://wgntv.com/news/national/air-traffic-controllers-union-responds-to-trumps-dei-attacks/

WTTW
— Democrat leaders ever-increasingly promote more illegal immigration.
https://news.wttw.com/2025/01/31/chicago-immigrant-advocates-push-increased-protections-trump-administration-targets-city
— Democrat leaders ever-increasingly promote more hatred against Trump.
https://news.wttw.com/2025/01/31/week-review-trump-funding-freeze-sows-confusion-ice-raids-begin

WGN RADIO
— Illinois State Representative Nicole La Ha (82nd District) joins Lisa Dent to discuss the property tax relief bill she has introduced which aims to cap property tax bills for any property receiving the Senior Citizens Homestead Exemption. (COMMENT: In today’s dollars, my Civil Service Retirement System pension is only 44% of what my salary was in 1997 and it is less than what my salary was in 1972.)
https://wgnradio.com/lisa-dent/state-representative-nicole-la-ha-introducing-property-tax-relief-bill-for-seniors/

CHICAGO TRIBUNE
— Aurora police not enforcing federal immigration laws, mayor says
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/01/31/afternoon-briefing-aurora-police-not-enforcing-federal-immigration-laws-mayor-says/
— Pritzker wants those involved in Jan. 6 Capitol riot blocked from state employment (COMMENT: After my Democrat GAO superiors forced me to retire when I was 49 years old in 1997, they did everything that they could to block me from getting employment appropriate for my work experience, education, professional certifications, and professional license.)
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/01/31/gov-jb-pritzker-wants-those-involved-in-jan-6-capitol-riot-blocked-from-state-employment/
— Naperville City Council candidate questionnaire responses for the April 1, 2025, election
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/01/31/naperville-council-candidate-questionnaire-april-2025-election/
— Pentagon prepares to deploy 1,000 more troops to bolster Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/01/31/pentagon-deploy-troops-trump-immigration-crackdown/
— Trump White House marks Black History Month while Defense Department declares ‘identity months dead’ (COMMENT: While I worked for the Democrats who ran GAO’s Chicago office for almost 18 years, they ever-increasingly required the office to celebrate groups each month, but they never celebrated Whites, males, or older people.)
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/01/31/trump-white-house-black-history-month/
— Health data, entire pages wiped from federal websites as Donald Trump officials target ‘gender ideology’
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/01/31/federal-agencies-remove-gender-ideology/
— Teacher’s comment about deportations at Dixmoor school sparks fear as threat of ICE raids loom
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/01/30/teachers-comment-deportations-dixmoor/
— A Will County judge Thursday reversed his December ruling that would have appointed a special prosecutor to represent 10 Will County Board Republicans in a road widening dispute with County Executive Jennifer Bertino-Tarrant.
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/01/30/will-county-special-prosecutor-veto-lawsuit/

CHICAGO SUN-TIMES
— Ever-increasingly, the mainstream news media exists to promote more hatred against Trump.
https://chicago.suntimes.com/columnists/2025/01/31/gene-lyons-president-donald-trump-will-ruin-american-experiment-last-column
— America’s enemies use birthright citizenship to destroy America.
https://chicago.suntimes.com/columnists/2025/01/31/wannabe-king-donald-trump-birthright-citizenship-14th-amendment-constitution-mona-charen
— I became a licensed CPA when I was 32 years old in 1981. Back then, very few women were licensed CPAs and extremely few minorities were licensed CPAs. Anticipate/expect that Democrats will ever-increasingly lower CPA licensing requirements so that more women and more minorities can become licensed CPAs.
https://chicago.suntimes.com/other-views/2025/01/31/illinois-licensing-reforms-address-racial-inequality-illinois-policy-institute-joshua-bandoch

DAILY HERALD
— Internship program helps students make post-high school plans (COMMENT: One of my roommates at NIU 1969-1970 was a summer intern at a big CPA firm. That helped him a) to be immediately hired by that firm when he graduated in June of 1970, b) to soon pass the CPA examination on his first attempt, and c) to soon become a partner at that firm. By way of contrast, a) I delivered mail during the summer of 1969, b) I did not start taking graduate accounting courses until 6 years after I graduated from NIU in August of 1970, c) I did not take and pass the CPA examination until 9 years after I graduated from NIU, d) I did not earn a master’s degree in accounting from DePaul until 10 years after I graduated from NIU, and e) I did not take and pass the Certified Internal Auditor examination and become a licensed CPA until 11 years after I graduated from NIU. By then, the accounting profession viewed me as being far too old to have a successful career in accounting.)
https://www.dailyherald.com/20250131/news/we-really-are-changing-lives-internship-program-helps-students-make-post-high-school-plans/
— Applications open for 26th Senate District seat
https://www.dailyherald.com/20250131/illinois-state-politics/applications-open-for-26th-senate-district-seat/

CRAIN’S CHICAGO BUSINESS
— Trump tariffs on Canada and Mexico could hit Illinois hard
https://www.chicagobusiness.com/politics/trump-tariffs-canada-mexico-will-hit-illinois-economy
— McDonald’s settles Hispanic student scholarship lawsuit filed by anti-DEI activist (COMMENT: Democrats use DEI to get rid of Republicans.)
https://www.chicagobusiness.com/restaurants/mcdonalds-settles-hispanic-student-scholarship-lawsuit

SOUTHERN
— Federal employees told to remove pronouns from email signatures by end of day
https://southernillinoisnow.com/2025/01/31/federal-employees-told-to-remove-pronouns-from-email-signatures-by-end-of-day/
— Some government employees dismayed after Musk jokes about buyout offer
https://southernillinoisnow.com/2025/01/30/some-government-employees-dismayed-after-musk-jokes-about-buyout-offer/

STATELINE
— To get more votes from Blacks, Democrat leaders promise to give them reparations.
https://www.mystateline.com/news/illinois-residents-could-get-reparations-if-a-new-bill-is-passed/

FOX ILLINOIS
— ICE rounds up alleged kidnapper, rapist, robber and more in immigration crackdown
https://foxillinois.com/news/nation-world/ice-rounds-up-alleged-kidnapper-rapist-robber-and-more-in-immigration-crackdown-ice-agents-continue-stepped-up-immigration-enforcement-efforts-focused-on-illegal-immigrants-accused-of-crimes

CENTRAL ILLINOIS PROUD
— Pentagon strips travel reimbursement for troops seeking abortions, fertility treatment
https://www.centralillinoisproud.com/news/health-news/ap-pentagon-strips-travel-reimbursement-for-troops-seeking-abortions-fertility-treatment/

BLACK ENTERPRISE
— The Chicago Treasurer’s Office gives preference to Blacks
https://www.blackenterprise.com/chicago-treasurers-office-black-financial-resources/

ELMHURST PATCH
— Democrats want to push pot in Elmhurst.
https://patch.com/illinois/elmhurst/marijuana-sales-elmhurst-hopefuls-weigh

BLOCK CLUB CHIAGO
— Black West Side Leaders Blast Trump’s Move To Restrict Diversity, Inclusion Policies: ‘We Are Not Going Back’  U.S. Rep. Danny Davis and other officials spoke out against President Donald Trump’s crackdown on DEI policies and his bid to freeze federal funding, saying they’re prepared to “fight tooth and nail.” (COMMENT: Democrats use DEI to get rid of Republicans.)
https://blockclubchicago.org/2025/01/31/black-west-side-leaders-blast-trumps-move-to-restrict-diversity-inclusion-policies-we-are-not-going-back/

CAPITOL FAX
— HGOPs demand Dems hold Statehouse hearings if Mayor Johnson won’t testify to Congress
https://capitolfax.com/2025/01/31/hgops-demand-dems-hold-statehouse-hearings-if-mayor-johnson-wont-testify-to-congress/
— Illinois-related executive directives, orders and lawsuits
https://capitolfax.com/2025/01/31/more-illinois-related-executive-directives-orders-and-lawsuits/
— Pritzker blocks pardoned Jan 6 rioters from state jobs
https://capitolfax.com/2025/01/31/pritzker-blocks-pardoned-jan-6-rioters-from-state-jobs/
— Afternoon roundup
https://capitolfax.com/2025/01/31/isabel%e2%80%99s-afternoon-roundup-240/

FROM ILLINOIS CENTER-RIGHT SOURCES

CENTER SQUARE ILLINOIS
— Illinois GOP conservatives call for new party leadership
https://www.thecentersquare.com/illinois/article_034f21e0-e020-11ef-8f17-93ad5efc4141.html
(FROM THE ARTICLE: A conservative branch of Illinois Republicans is calling out the party’s House leader.  The Illinois Freedom Caucus, made up of six state representatives and one senator, is accusing House Minority Leader Tony McCombie, R-Savanna, of playing “silly games” after she denied several services at the Capitol for not voting for her as leader. Some of the services the group said they are being denied include access to their state websites, emails, and email newsletter services, access to communications staffers including access to social media sites, audio and visual services and press release services, and all outreach assistance services. “At the end of the day, what she’s doing here is she is punishing tax paying voters,” said Vice Chairman Blaine Wilhour, R-Beecher City. This comes after Aaron Del Mar, the co-chair of the Illinois Republican Party, abruptly resigned, saying Republican principles of transparency and integrity are being compromised. Del Mar did not offer specifics. Wilhour said it is time for new party leadership. “I think the only way to unify the caucus at this point is for her to step aside,” said Wilhour. A request for comment from McCombie’s office was not returned. The Illinois Freedom Caucus issued a statement after they learned the Statehouse services were being denied. “Minority Leader Tony McCombie has officially declared war on conservatives. She seems to be more interested in going after conservative members of her own caucus than she is in taking on the Democrats who control every level of government in our state and who have run our state into the ground,” the statement read.)

SOUTHLAND JOURNAL
— Jim Marter Issues Statement on Lauren Underwood’s Failing Record on Women’s Safety
https://thesouthlandjournal.com/jim-marter-issues-statement-on-lauren-underwoods-failing-record-on-womens-safety/

MCHENRY COUNTY BLOG
— Study Finds Political Corruption in Illinois Results in Average of More than One Conviction Every Week between 1983 and 2023
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2025/01/31/study-finds-political-corruption-in-illinois-results-in-average-of-more-than-one-conviction-every-week-between-1983-and-2023/
— On Providing Rail Service to Rockford
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2025/01/31/on-providing-rail-service-to-rockford/

FROM NATIONAL CENTER-RIGHT SOURCES

WASHINGTON TIMES
— Democrats declare political open season on Trump, MAGA
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2025/jan/30/democrats-declare-political-open-season-donald-tru/
— Federal websites shut down temporarily as Trump administration scrubs DEI content
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2025/jan/31/federal-websites-shut-temporarily-trump-administra/
— FBI purge: 20+ top officials ousted in sweeping shake-up
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2025/jan/31/top-fbi-officials-terminated-forced-quit/
— While rescuers searched for air crash victims in the Potomac, partisans rushed to blame Trump. Media and Democrats couldn’t wait to score political points with lies.
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2025/jan/30/rescuers-searched-air-crash-victims-potomac-partis/
— Trump’s firing of inspectors general sets up battle over government control
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2025/jan/30/editorial-trump-firing-inspectors-general-sets-bat/

WASHINGTON EXAMINER
— Choosing new leaders, Democrats are still in denial
https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/daily-memo/3307091/choosing-new-dnc-leaders-democrats-in-denial/

WASHINGTON FREE BEACON
— De-Wokeifying Government Is Easier Said Than Done
https://freebeacon.com/columns/de-wokeifying-government-is-easier-said-than-done/

NEW YORK POST
— If you really support immigration, stop excusing border chaos
https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/3305430/if-you-really-support-immigration-stop-excusing-border-chaos/
— FAA embroiled in lawsuit alleging it turned away 1,000 applicants based on race — that contributed to staffing woes
https://nypost.com/2025/01/31/us-news/faa-embroiled-in-lawsuit-alleging-it-turned-away-1000-applicants-based-on-race/

BREITBART
— Guantanamo Bay Will Be Opened to “Full Capacity” to Detain “High-Priority Criminal Illegals”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nq94ZipfrRY
— FBI’s 55 Field Offices ‘Working Really Hard’ to Help Target Criminal Illegals Across U.S.
https://www.breitbart.com/immigration/2025/01/31/report-fbis-55-field-offices-working-really-hard-to-help-target-criminal-illegals/

DAILY CALLER
— ‘Bowing To Wokeness Since 2010’: Fmr Air Traffic Controller Says Short Staffing Is ‘Attributable To Obama Admin’
https://dailycaller.com/2025/01/30/michael-pearson-obama-admin-short-staffing/

EPOPCH TIMES
— US to Impose Tariffs on Canada, Mexico, on China on Feb. 1. The US will impose 25 percent tariffs on Mexico and Canada, and 10 percent on China, the White House said.
https://www.theepochtimes.com/us/us-to-impose-25-percent-tariffs-on-canada-mexico-10-percent-on-china-on-feb-1-post-5802206

FOX NEWS
— ICE getting ‘no cooperation’ from sanctuary cities on criminal migrants
https://www.foxnews.com/video/6368045648112
— Democrats rally around lightning rod issue during unruly DNC debate despite voter backlash in 2024. A wave of left-wing protesters repeatedly interrupted the final DNC chair debate ahead of Saturday’s election.
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/democrats-rally-around-lightning-rod-issue-during-unruly-dnc-debate-despite-voter-backlash-2024
— Why do Democrats defend violent, criminal illegal immigrants against Trump raids?  Democrats would rather score political points than keep Americans safe.
https://www.foxnews.com/opinion/why-do-democrats-defend-violent-criminal-illegal-immigrants-against-trump-raids
— Trump’s migrant DHS FBI crackdown leaves killers, rapists nowhere to run. FBI’s 55 field offices around country supporting DHS operations.
https://www.foxnews.com/us/trumps-migrant-dhs-fbi-crackdown-leaves-killers-rapists-nowhere-run

JONATHAN TURLEY
— “Center of the Action”: Bally’s Chicago Casino Sued for Discrimination Against White Investors
https://jonathanturley.org/2025/01/31/center-of-the-action-ballys-chicago-casino-sued-for-discrimination-against-white-investors/

NEWSMAX
— Colombia Pres. Asks Illegals to Return
https://www.newsmax.com/newsfront/colombia-immigration-deportation/2025/01/31/id/1197293/

OSV NEWS
— Illinois state lawmakers file bills to legalize physician assisted-suicide
https://www.osvnews.com/illinois-state-lawmakers-file-bills-to-legalize-physician-assisted-suicide/

FROM NATIONAL CENTER-LEFT SOURCES

REUTERS
— Musk aides lock government workers out of computer systems at US agency
https://www.reuters.com/world/us/musk-aides-lock-government-workers-out-computer-systems-us-agency-sources-say-2025-01-31/

ABC7
— WH sidesteps question on hiring disabled federal workers (COMMENT: While I worked for the Democrats who ran GAO’s Chicago office 1980-1997, they assigned me to supervise all their disabled employees.)
https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/live-updates/trump-2nd-term-live-updates-executive-action-plans/?id=117934786

NBC NEWS
— Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker blocks Jan. 6 rioters from state jobs after Trump pardons
https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/politics-news/illinois-gov-jb-pritzker-blocks-jan-6-rioters-state-jobs-trump-pardons-rcna190101

CBS NEWS
— CDC purges STD and vaccine recommendations after Trump gender order (COMMENT: Democrats ever-increasingly promote more LGBTQ.)
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/cdc-std-vaccine-gender-trump/
— Agencies asked to scrub federal government websites to remove diversity-related content
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/trump-officials-pausing-most-federal-government-websites-friday/
— Trump officials make plans to revoke legal status of migrants welcomed under Biden
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/trump-officials-make-plans-to-revoke-legal-status-of-migrants-welcomed-under-biden/

NEW YORK TIMES
— Trump Administration Shocks Senior F.B.I. Ranks by Moving to Replace Them (COMMENT: All during the almost 18 years that I worked for the Democrats who ran GAO, the more of the following that their employees were, the more that they did to replace them: conservative, Republican, White, male, older, non-veteran, Protestant, German American, and/or had ancestors who had been in America for a long time. They focused on replacing the aforesaid who they had not promoted to GS-13 (currently $117,807/year) by age 25, GS-14 ($139,211) by age 30, GS-15 ($163,749) by age 35, and Senior Executive Service ($195,200) by age 40.)
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/01/30/us/politics/trump-fbi-firing.html
— Trump Raises New Threat to Sanctuary Cities: Blocking Transportation Dollars. A new order revives an old battle about how much an administration is allowed to coerce cities and states by withholding money.
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/01/31/upshot/sanctuary-cities-trump-transportation-funds.html

NEW YORKER
— Democrats and RINOs use DEI to get rid of Republicans
https://www.newyorker.com/newsletter/the-daily/the-real-reason-behind-trumps-war-on-dei

CATO
— Democrats and RINOs use wokeness/wokeism to get rid of Republicans
https://www.cato.org/blog/here-comes-legal-campaign-against-woke-employers

JD SUPRA
— Will Trump Administration End Women and Minority-Owned Business Set Asides? (COMMENT: The Democrats who run the federal government set aside promotions for their Democrat employees who are minority, female, younger, and/or veteran.)
https://www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/will-trump-administration-end-women-and-9111036/
— States Continue to Enforce Their Affirmative Action Requirements
https://www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/states-continue-to-enforce-their-3899035/

SPLC
— Democrats and RINOs use DEI to get rid of Republicans
https://www.splcenter.org/resources/stories/why-wrong-teach-students-about-dei/

January 29, 2025

FROM ILLINOIS CENTER-LEFT SOURCES

CHICAGO TRIBUNE
— Naperville, DuPage officials and organizations explain policies, preparation for heightened federal immigration enforcement (COMMENT: Pritzker and the Immigrant Solidarity DuPage organization put tremendous pressure on law enforcement in DuPage County to not enforce America’s immigration laws. How will law enforcement in DuPage County respond?)
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/01/28/naperville-dupage-immigration-ice-enforcement/

CHICAGO SUN-TIMES
— Democrat leaders ever-increasingly flood America with citizens of foreign countries who have demographics that vote for Democrats.
— Removing medical debt from credit reports opens door to economic opportunity: ‘It gives me hope’  The change is expected to boost millions of people’s credit scores and helping them qualify for home mortgages. It’s unclear whether President Donald Trump will reverse the federal rule announced Jan. 7 by the Biden administration. (COMMENT: Since became a federal employee when I was 18 years old in 1966, my critics/opponents have been furious that the federal government has paid 72% of my health insurance.  Since I got married in 1978, my critics/opponents have been furious that the federal government has paid 72% of our health insurance.)
https://chicago.suntimes.com/money/2025/01/28/medical-debt-credit-reports-home-mortages-housing-opportunity
— GOP plan to cut Medicaid expansion could cost coverage for 900K Illinoisans, Dems say
https://chicago.suntimes.com/politics/donald-trump/2025/01/29/gop-plan-medicaid-expansion-donald-trump

ABC7
— Here’s how a freeze on federal grants and loans could impact Chicago and Illinois. Gov. JB Pritzker says the Medicaid system was down on Tuesday in Illinois and other states across the country. (COMMENT: To what extent are those in Illinois, your county, your township, your municipality, your school district, and your precinct dependent on a) federal aid, b) state aid, c) township aid, d) municipal aid, and e) school district aid?)
https://abc7chicago.com/post/is-trump-freezing-federal-aid-how-funding-freeze-grants-loans-could-impact-chicago-illinois-programs/15844666/
— Video shows Tiffany Henyard involved in brawl at Thornton Township meeting. Weeks-long government shutdown ends with services set to resume Wednesday.
https://abc7chicago.com/post/tiffany-henyard-news-video-shows-involved-brawl-meeting-services-resume-wednesday/15845872/
— ICE arrestee from local weekend raid ordered released by federal judge
https://abc7chicago.com/post/edward-martinez-cermeno-venezuelan-migrant-swept-ice-raids-chicago-area-ordered-released-federal-judge/15844932/?cmp=emc-wls-news-headlines-1/29/2025
— Elgin family says undocumented man who had not committed any crimes taken into custody. ICE arrests another man nearby after smashing car window, wife says.
https://abc7chicago.com/post/elgin-il-news-today-family-says-undocumented-man-had-not-committed-any-crimes-taken-custody-ice-arrests-another/15844736/

CBS2
— More than 100 arrested in Chicago area as targeted immigration enforcement efforts continue
https://www.cbsnews.com/chicago/news/mayor-brandon-johnson-congress-sanctuary-city-policies-immigration/
— Chicago area nonprofits in dismay over Trump administration’s federal funding freeze
https://www.cbsnews.com/chicago/news/chicago-area-nonprofits-trump-federal-funding-freeze/

FOX32
— Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson defends city’s sanctuary status amid ICE raids
https://www.fox32chicago.com/news/chicago-mayor-brandon-johnson-defends-sanctuary-status-ice-raids

WGN9
— Democrat leaders ever-increasingly crow about their success a) in glorifying and praising illegals and b) in demonizing, denigrating, and condemning those who want America’s immigration laws to be enforced.
https://wgntv.com/news/chicago-news/immigration-raids-fear-chicago/

CRAIN’S CHICAGO BUSINESS
— Illinois regains Medicaid access after federal funding freeze confusion
https://www.chicagobusiness.com/health-care/illinois-regains-medicaid-access-after-funding-freeze-confusion
— Restaurants ready themselves for ICE (COMMENT: What percent of dishwashers are illegals? I was a dishwasher 1964-1966. If there had been as many illegals back then as there are now, one of them would have gotten the job that I got.)
https://www.chicagobusiness.com/crains-daily-gist/restaurants-ready-themselves-ice

SPRINGFIELD STATE JOURNAL REGISTER
— ‘More questions than answers.’ White House memo sends Springfield agencies scrambling
https://www.sj-r.com/story/news/politics/courts/2025/01/29/white-house-memo-sends-springfield-agencies-scrambling/78001348007/

CHAMPAIGN/URBANA NEWS GAZETTE
— Trump-endorsed candidates win primary races to replace Matt Gaetz and Mike Waltz. (COMMENT: Which Republican candidates on the April 1, 2025 ballot in your precinct are seeking Trump’s endorsement? Short of that, which ones support Trump?)
https://www.news-gazette.com/news/nation-world/randy-fine-conservative-desantis-critic-wins-republican-primary-to-replace-mike-waltz-in-us-house/article_f5ceb1c2-d5e5-5bdc-bd96-42a68379a138.html

25 NEWS NOW
— Illinois GOP lawmakers introduce bill tightening immigration laws (COMMENT: What has your Republican state senator and representative done in support of this bill?)
https://www.25newsnow.com/2025/01/28/illinois-gop-lawmakers-introduce-bill-tightening-immigration-laws/
(FROM THE ARTICLE:  Illinois Senate Republicans introduced a bill Tuesday requiring police to work with ICE agents to deport illegal immigrants convicted of felonies. Republican Sen. Neil Anderson of Andalusia criticized Gov. JB Pritzker for supporting policies like the Illinois Trust Act. This act limits how police can collaborate with ICE on immigration enforcement. “Under the law, Pritzker continues to defend, Illinois law enforcement agencies who prohibit from helping federal immigration officials. Law enforcement officers are effectively blocked from doing their job when it comes to removing violent undocumented criminals from our streets,” said Anderson. Other Republican senators, such as Terri Bryant (R-Murphysboro), and Andrew Chesney (R-Freeport), seek to repeal the Illinois Trust Act. However, Illinois’ legislative branch has an overwhelming Democratic majority, so the future of this Republican-led bill is uncertain.)

WSIL TV
— Florida lawmakers pass sweeping immigration bill to help enforce America’s immigration laws. What bills have your Republican state senator and representative introduced to help enforce America’s immigration laws?
https://www.wsiltv.com/news/national/florida-lawmakers-pass-sweeping-immigration-bill-to-help-with-trump-crackdown/article_ec01021d-1ff6-5e9f-b49a-82fcd80fc0fa.html

FOX ILLINOIS
— Violent ‘illegal aliens’ among 3,500 migrants arrested since Trump took office
https://foxillinois.com/news/nation-world/several-illegal-aliens-accused-of-violent-crimes-in-us-arrested-since-trump-took-office-immigration-migration-migrants-politics-white-house-press-secretary-karoline-leavitt-crimes-criminals-murder-death-rape-sexual-assault
— New Illinois legislation hopes to provide African American reparations (COMMENT: Anticipate/expect ever-increasing pressure from Democrats on those who are the following to disclose their ties to slavery: conservative, Republican, American, White, male, older, non-poor, non-veteran, Protestant, German American, and/or have ancestors who have been in America for a long time. I am all of the aforesaid. All my ancestors immigrated during the 1840s and 1850s. In their defense, they always lived in northeast Illinois, they never were in a position to discriminate against anyone, and they never did discriminate against anyone.)
https://newschannel20.com/news/local/new-illinois-legislation-hopes-to-provide-african-american-reparations

NPR ILLINOIS
— Trump fires EEOC and labor board officials, setting up legal fight (COMMENT: How has EEOC impacted you? I became an IRS Revenue Officer when I was 22 years old in 1971 because my Firestone Store boss had rudely fired me. He did that because I had told him that I had accepted a job offer from Oldsmobile. But Oldsmobile withdrew that job offer saying it had just agreed to stop hiring Whites to settle an EEOC complaint.)
https://www.nprillinois.org/2025-01-28/trump-fires-eeoc-and-labor-board-officials-setting-up-legal-fight

CAPITOL FAX
— Morning briefing
https://capitolfax.com/2025/01/29/isabel%e2%80%99s-morning-briefing-445/

FROM ILLINOIS CENTER-RIGHT SOURCES

WIREPOINTS
— There’s a reason the press isn’t reporting on the types of migrants ICE is arresting
https://wirepoints.org/theres-a-reason-the-press-isnt-reporting-on-the-types-of-migrants-ice-is-arresting-theyre-violent-criminals-wirepoints-on-am-560-chicagos-morning-answer/

JOHN KASS
— Protecting Illegal Migrants Against America: Pritzker the Fool and His Brother Brandon
https://johnkassnews.com/pritzker-the-fool-and-his-brother-brandon/

GOPUSA ILLINOIS
— My critics/opponents despise/hate those who do not promote electric vehicles (EV). How are they responding to my ordering an EV, a 2025 Dodge Daytona R/T?  Will they stress that it is not an economy car, but instead, a performance car? My critics/opponents despise/hate cars and especially American-nameplate performance cars. How are they responding to the fact that Dodge is not an American-owned company and that the car I ordered will be built in Canada? I have owned American-nameplate performance cars since 1966. I have owned my 1972 Corvette since 1971. – Dave Diersen
http://www.gopillinois.com

ILLINOIS REVIEW
— GOP State Sen. McConchie Resigns, Pushes for IL GOP Chair Kathy Salvi’s Son to Replace Him, Sparking Nepotism Concerns
https://www.illinoisreview.com/illinoisreview/2025/01/gop-state-sen-mcconchie-resigns-pushes-for-il-gop-chair-kathy-salvis-son-to-replace-him-sparking-nepotism-concerns.html

FROM NATIONAL CENTER-RIGHT SOURCES

WASHINGTON TIMES
— Pentagon chief Hegseth yanks Gen. Milley’s security detail and clearance. Orders IG inspection into Milley’s actions to see if he should be demoted or not.
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2025/jan/29/pentagon-chief-pete-hegseth-revokes-gen-mark-mille/
— Trump’s spending pause? Biden did it first
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2025/jan/28/donald-trump-spending-pause-joe-biden-first/

NEW YORK POST
— Trump is following through with unprecedented and swift action to begin his presidency – which has reset the national mood (COMMENT: How has the mood changed in your county, township, municipality, school district, and precinct? I will get a measure of that when I hand-deliver campaign literature and a copy of the sample ballot in my precinct.)
https://nypost.com/2025/01/28/opinion/trump-is-following-through-with-unprecedented-and-swift-action-to-begin-his-presidency-which-has-reset-the-national-mood/

DAILY CALL:ER
— Trump To Defund Schools That Teach Critical Race Theory, Radical Gender Ideology (COMMENT: How strongly do Democrats teach Critical Race Theory and Radical Gender Ideology in your school district?)
https://dailycaller.com/2025/01/29/donald-trump-critical-race-theory-gender-ideology-1776-commission/

EPOCH TIMES
— Trump Admin Offers Buyouts to Nearly All Federal Employees. Federal employees are being offered buyouts through a new ‘deferred resignation’ initiative, allowing them to resign while receiving pay until September. (COMMENT: In 1993, when I was 45 years old, the Democrats who ran GAO “offered” $25,000 buyouts and early retirement to get rid of its older White male non-veteran employees who they had not promoted to GS-15, currently $163,749-$180,974/year in today’s dollars. I was eligible because I had 25 years of federal service – 13 with GAO, 9 with IRS, and 3 with the Post Office. They succeeded in forcing me to retire in 1997 just before their “offer” expired. If I had not succumbed, I would not have been eligible for regular retirement until 2003. Things that I did that helped me survive 1993-1997 include my a) earning a master’s degree in financial markets and trading in 1997, b) my becoming a Certified Forensic Accountant in 1997, Financial Services Auditor in 1996, Government Financial Manager in 1994, Fraud Examiner in 1990, Internal Auditor and licensed CPA in 1981, and CPA in 1979, and c) my earning master’s degrees in accounting from DePaul in 1980 and in business from Loyola in 1976.)
https://www.theepochtimes.com/us/trump-admin-offers-buyouts-to-nearly-all-federal-employees-5800390

FEDERALIST
— Teachers Unions Conspire To Evade Trump’s Border Solutions With ‘ICE-Free Safe Zones’
https://thefederalist.com/2025/01/29/teachers-unions-conspire-to-evade-trumps-border-solutions-with-ice-free-safe-zones/

FOX NEWS
— Liberal officials are siding with illegals (COMMENT: My critics/opponents side with illegals. I should write about my critics/opponents. I would focus on those who have lots of religious, government, political, and/or financial clout in Wheaton, Milton Township, DuPage County, and Illinois. I would focus on those who have taken the most/biggest adverse actions against me lately.)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bzlzM5Cgsj4
— President Trump promised mass deportations. Here’s how it will help Americans. Americans will ‘welcome the relief’ mass deportation will bring.
https://www.foxnews.com/opinion/president-trump-promised-mass-deportations-heres-how-help-americans
— Trump administration touts 969 illegal immigrant arrests in one day: ‘HERE ARE SOME OF THE WORST’  Trump made getting tough on illegal immigration a pillar of his presidential campaign.
https://www.foxnews.com/us/trump-administration-touts-969-illegal-immigrant-arrests-one-day-here-some-worst

NEWSMAX
— Trump Doing Americans’ Bidding on Illegals, Not Media’s (COMMENT: My critics/opponents side with illegals. I should write about my critics/opponents. I would focus on those who have lots of religious, government, political, and/or financial clout in Wheaton, Milton Township, DuPage County, and Illinois. I would focus on those who have taken the most/biggest adverse actions against me lately.)
https://www.newsmax.com/newsmax-tv/alina-habba-donald-trump-immigration/2025/01/28/id/1196915/

WESTERN JOURNAL
— Bombshell Affirmative Action EO Advances Trump’s Colorblind Agenda
https://www.westernjournal.com/bombshell-affirmative-action-eo-advances-trumps-colorblind-agenda/

FROM NATIONAL CENTER-LEFT SOURCES

REUTERS
— White House offers 2 million federal employees financial incentives to quit
https://www.reuters.com/world/us/white-house-offers-incentives-federal-employees-resign-warns-downsizing-2025-01-28/

MSN
— Streets empty in Chicago over Trump’s immigration crackdown
https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/world/streets-empty-in-chicago-over-trump-s-immigration-crackdown/ar-AA1y290f
— ‘He’ll stiff you’: Sen. Tim Kaine (D-VA) warns federal workers Trump’s ‘buyout’ offer is bogus
https://www.msn.com/en-nz/news/other/he-ll-stiff-you-senator-warns-federal-workers-trump-s-buyout-offer-is-bogus/ar-AA1y22Wj
— VIDEO: 2025 Dodge Charger Daytona PRODUCTION LINE (COMMENT: This Dodge production line is much different from the one that I worked on Belvidere in 1970. At that time, I owned a 1969 Charger SE. I owned a 1968 Charger R/T collector car 1994-2005. I have owned my 2013 Charger R/T since 2012. I have ordered a 2025 Charger Daytona R/T.)
https://www.msn.com/en-us/autos/news/2025-dodge-charger-daytona-production-line/vi-AA1xFSyE
(FROM THE ARTICLE: All-new Dodge Charger production stages at Stellantis Windsor Assembly Plant in Windsor, Ontario, Canada.)
— The Purge Continues: Donald Trump Axes DOJ Officials Involved in His Prosecution (COMMENT: My Democrat GAO superiors purged me when I was 49 years old in 1997 because I was an active member in a class action lawsuit that charged them with reverse discrimination, age discrimination, and retaliation.)
https://www.msn.com/en-us/entertainment/entertainment-celebrity/the-purge-continues-donald-trump-axes-doj-officials-involved-in-his-prosecution/ss-AA1y1ir3

NEW YORK TIMES
— Pentagon Removes General Milley’s Security Detail and Revokes His Clearance. The Pentagon has asked its inspector general to review the record and behavior of Gen. Mark A. Milley, the retired chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff who stood up to President Trump in his first term.
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/01/28/us/politics/trump-pentagon-milley-security.html
— Trump Freezes Trillions. Chaos Ensues
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/01/29/podcasts/the-daily/trump-freeze-chaos-grants-loans.html

WASHINGTON POST
— White House incentivizes federal workers to resign. The email sent to the federal workforce is the most sweeping effort yet by the new Trump administration to shrink the ranks of government employees.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2025/01/28/trump-emails-workforce/
— What federal workers should know about Trump administration’s ‘deferred resignation’ offer
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2025/01/28/federal-worker-offer-resign-explained-trump/
— Democrat leaders ever-increasingly promote more LGBTQ.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2025/01/29/transgender-care-trump-executive-order-youth/

USA TODAY
— Democrat leaders ever-increasingly promote more LGBTQ.
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2025/01/28/transgender-rights-at-risk-trump-executive-order/77977951007/

WALL STREET JOURNAL
— Trump and a Bequest From the ‘Meritocracy’  A scholarship student in the ’50s leaves his school $50 million. (COMMENT: According to my critics/opponents, I owe none of my successes in life to meritocracy. According to them, I owe all my successes in life to my benefitted from discrimination against those who share their demographics: Democrat, RINO, minority, female, younger, LGBTQ, veteran, non-Protestant, non-German American, and/or have ancestors who have not been in America for a long time.)
https://www.wsj.com/opinion/trump-and-a-bequest-from-the-meritocracy-john-mitchell-education-scholarship-62716896
— America’s enemies promote birthright citizenship
https://www.wsj.com/opinion/trumps-attack-on-birthright-citizenship-constitution-14th-amendment-court-precedent-f88b4b53

FORTUNE
— Democrat and RINO employers ever-increasingly use DEI a) to not hire Republicans and b) to get rid of their Republican employees.
https://fortune.com/2025/01/29/companies-like-costco-and-apple-are-defending-their-dei-programs-despite-nationwide-pushback-these-are-the-companies-standing-by-their-policies/

BLOOMBERG
— Trump Buyouts, Spending Freezes Wreak Havoc Across Government
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-01-29/trump-buyouts-spending-freezes-wreak-havoc-across-government?embedded-checkout=true

BARRON’S
— Trump Crackdown Spurs Migrants To Seek Refuge In Mexico (COMMENT: Mexico ever-increasingly serves as a staging ground for foreign countries.)
https://www.barrons.com/news/trump-crackdown-spurs-migrants-to-seek-refuge-in-mexico-8e4fa822

BUSINESS INSIDER
— EY report doubles down on diversity initiatives as DEI comes under scrutiny in Trump’s first weeks in power (COMMENT: The accounting profession had no interest in me because a) I did not take and pass the CPA examination until I was 30, b) I did not earn a master’s degree in accounting until I was 31, and c) I did not take and pass the Certified Internal Auditor examination and become a licensed CPA until I was 32. The accounting profession had no interest in me because I could help it meet its Affirmative Action quotas, goals, and targets because I was a White male.)
https://www.businessinsider.com/ey-report-how-to-implement-dei-initiatives-donald-trump-2025-1

CAPITOL HILL NEWS
— Trump Suggests Using IRS Agents For Border Security Amid Immigration Crackdown  (COMMENT: During the last 6 months of 1971, I was an IRS Revenue Officer in training. My IRS superiors took me and my classmates off that training for 2 weeks and had us make phone calls to help enforce Nixon’s price and wage controls.)
https://capitalhillnews.com/trump-suggests-using-irs-agents-for-border-security-amid-immigration-crackdown/

NEW REPUBLIC
— Trump’s Buyout Offer for Federal Workers Is Already Backfiring
https://newrepublic.com/post/190844/trump-buyout-offer-federal-workers-backfiring

FEDERAL NEWS NETWORK
— Trump administration offers most feds ‘deferred resignation’ if they agree to quit by next week. Employees who choose to resign from their roles have to let OPM know of their decision by Feb. 6, according to an email sent to the federal workforce Tuesday.
https://federalnewsnetwork.com/workforce/2025/01/trump-administration-offers-most-feds-deferred-resignation-if-they-quit-by-next-week/

POLITICO
— Speaker Mike Johnson said on Tuesday that he “fully” supports President Donald Trump’s decision to freeze federal grants and loans, adding it is well within his executive authority.
https://www.politico.com/live-updates/2025/01/28/congress/johnson-fully-supports-trumps-aid-freeze-00201104

PBS
— Trump signs order to end federal support for gender transitions for people under 19
https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/trump-signs-order-to-end-federal-support-for-gender-transitions-for-people-under-19
— Trump offers all federal workers a buyout with nearly 8 months’ pay  (COMMENT: In 1993, when I was 45 years old, the Democrats who ran GAO “offered” $25,000 buyouts and early retirement to get rid of its older White male non-veteran employees who they had not promoted to GS-15, currently $163,749-$180,974/year in today’s dollars. I was eligible because I had 25 years of federal service – 13 with GAO, 9 with IRS, and 3 with the Post Office. They succeeded in forcing me to retire in 1997 just before their “offer” expired. If I had not succumbed, I would not have been eligible for regular retirement until 2003. Things that I did that helped me survive 1993-1997 include my a) earning a master’s degree in financial markets and trading in 1997, b) my becoming a Certified Forensic Accountant in 1997, Financial Services Auditor in 1996, Government Financial Manager in 1994, Fraud Examiner in 1990, Internal Auditor and licensed CPA in 1981, and CPA in 1979, and c) my earning master’s degrees in accounting from DePaul in 1980 and in business from Loyola in 1976.)
https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/trump-offers-all-federal-workers-a-buyout-with-7-months-pay

CATO
— Remembering Nixon’s Wage and Price Controls (COMMENT: During the last 6 months of 1971, I was an IRS Revenue Officer in training. My IRS superiors took me and my classmates off that training for 2 weeks and had us make phone calls to help enforce Nixon’s price and wage controls.)
https://www.cato.org/commentary/remembering-nixons-wage-price-controls
(FROM THE ARTICLE: President Richard Nixon showed us just how dangerous unchecked executive power can be to the free-enterprise system. On Aug. 15, 1971, in a nationally televised address, Nixon announced, “I am today ordering a freeze on all prices and wages throughout the United States.” After a 90-day freeze, increases would have to be approved by a “Pay Board” and a “Price Commission,” with an eye toward eventually lifting controls — conveniently, after the 1972 election.)

AXIOS
— Trump’s death by a thousand cuts to federal workforce (COMMENT: Virtually all federal employees are Democrats. If I was still a federal employee, my Democrat superiors, supervisors, coworkers, and subordinates would have killed me by now figuratively if not literally.)
https://www.axios.com/local/washington-dc/2025/01/29/trump-federal-workforce-overhaul-buyouts-fork-in-road
— Trump offering buyouts to all federal workers
https://www.axios.com/2025/01/28/trump-federal-workers-quit-severance
— All undocumented immigrants are criminals
https://www.axios.com/2025/01/28/trump-immigrants-criminals-white-house-briefing

TELEGRAPH
— Civil servants plot to sabotage Trump’s working from home ban
https://www.yahoo.com/news/civil-servants-plot-sabotage-trump-220000307.html

DAILY MAIL
— Trump to offer two million federal workers buyouts in accelerated government purge
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-14335075/trump-government-purge-offer-buyouts-federal-workers.html

January 28, 2025

FROM ILLINOIS CENTER-LEFT SOURCES

ABC7
— ICE raids continue as Mayor Johnson called to testify on Chicago’s sanctuary city policy
https://abc7chicago.com/post/ice-chicago-immigration-raids-today-arrests-continue-mayor-brandon-johnson-called-testify-sanctuary-city-policy/15843173/
— ICE makes arrests in Chicago, suburbs as part of nationwide immigration raids. The atmosphere of the ICE raids and rumors of raids is creating a chilling effect in some neighborhoods. (COMMENT: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly demonize, denigrate, and condemn law enforcement.)
https://abc7chicago.com/post/chicago-immigration-raids-today-ice-agents-make-arrests-city-suburbs-donald-trumps-border-czar-tom-homan-town/15840132/
— Chicago alderman critical of how ICE agents handling immigration mission in city. ‘They had Dr. Phil, you know, which lends a circus atmosphere to this entire thing,’ Ald. Brian Hopkins said.  (COMMENT: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly demonize, denigrate, and condemn law enforcement.)
https://abc7chicago.com/post/chicago-alderman-critical-how-feds-handling-deportation-mission-threat-illinois-ice-raids-arrests-remains-high/15841859/
— Chicago nonprofits losing resources to help refugees after Trump suspends resettlement program (COMMENT: Democrat leaders ever-increasingly promote more illegal immigration.)
https://abc7chicago.com/post/chicago-immigration-news-nonprofits-like-world-relief-chicagoland-losing-resources-help-refugees-resettle/15841727/

NBC5
— Brandon Johnson and three other U.S. mayors asked to testify at Congressional hearing on ‘sanctuary cities’ https://www.nbcchicago.com/news/local/chicago-politics/brandon-johnson-congress-testify-chicago-sanctuary-city/3657572/
— Trump addresses House Republican conference in Florida
https://www.nbcchicago.com/news/business/money-report/watch-live-trump-addresses-house-republican-conference-in-florida/3657332/
— Florida Republicans upend DeSantis’ plans over Trump’s immigration orders. State GOP legislative leaders abruptly ended a special session called by Ron DeSantis and are pursuing their own immigration proposal, sparking an intraparty battle.
https://www.nbcchicago.com/news/national-international/florida-republicans-upend-desantis-trump-immigration/3657061/
— Democrats have declared a Second Civil War against Republicans. Democrats do not want their illegals to be deported because their illegals are their soldiers in their Democrat Army.
https://www.nbcchicago.com/news/politics/who-is-ice-targeting-in-chicago-what-to-know-amid-enhanced-operations/3657103/

CBS2
— Democrat leaders ever-increasingly promote more illegal immigration.
https://www.cbsnews.com/chicago/video/waukegan-illinois-woman-devastated-after-ice-takes-her-dad/
https://www.cbsnews.com/chicago/news/ice-agents-conduct-search-cicero-home/

WGN9
— Chicago’s ‘sanctuary city status’ under investigation by federal committee amid immigration raids
https://wgntv.com/news/chicago-news/chicago-sanctuary-city-investigation/

FOX32
— According to Pritzker, the following are  “midwestern values:” a) dependency on government and charity, b) LGBTQ, c) abortion, d) mass/illegal immigration, e) booze, gambling, pot, prostitution, and other vices, f) diminishment of Second Amendment rights, and g) Affirmative Action and DEI, that is, race and gender based preference giving, patronage, political affiliation discrimination, reverse discrimination, age discrimination, religious discrimination, and national origin discrimination.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/politics/government/pritzker-takes-aim-at-trump-during-bill-signing-our-midwestern-values-are-under-siege/ar-AA1xBpTr

WBEZ
— Democrat leaders want all the information that they can get to help their illegals avoid deportation.
https://www.wbez.org/immigration/2025/01/27/chicago-immigration-ice-raid-monday

CHICAGO TRIBUNE
— US places dozens of senior aid officials on leave, citing possible resistance to Trump orders (COMMENT: I always fully complied with my Democrat GAO superiors’ and supervisors’ orders to give my Democrat subordinates big time preference, and especially those who were minority, female, younger, and/or veteran. But that was not enough for them. They wanted to and they did force me to retire early and they gave my Black subordinate my job and my preferred corner office. He had less work experience than I had. He had less education than I had. He had one professional certification while I had six. He had no professional license like the one I had.)
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/01/27/senior-officials-leave/
— Former Illinois Senate GOP leader Dan McConchie is resigning
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/01/27/former-illinois-senate-gop-leader-dan-mcconchie-resigning-to-start-nonprofit-accessibility-group/
— Democrats have declared a Second Civil War against Republicans. Democrats do not want their illegals to be deported because their illegals are their soldiers in their Democrat Army.
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/01/27/chicago-ice-raids-what-to-know/
— ‘You’re Dr. Phil.’ TV personality says he joined immigration raids in Chicago for ‘transparency.’
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/01/27/dr-phil-chicago-ice-migrants-raids/
— Democrat leaders continue to use “mistaken ICE report in Chicago” to promote fear
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/01/28/hamline-elementary-immigration-fear/
— Nate Fields back on ballot as Thornton Township supervisor candidate, judge rules
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/01/27/thornton-township-candidate-nate-fields-back-on-ballot/

CHICAGO SUN-TIMES
— ALL OF THE FRONT PAGE: Democrat leaders have concluded that the only way that they can regain the White House, U.S. Senate, and/or U.S. House is a) to bring in many more millions of their illegals and b) to stop Trump from deporting any of the many millions that they have already brought in. Democrat leaders have declared a Second Civil War against Republicans and illegals are their soldiers in their Democrat Army. Anticipate/expect ever-increasing Democrat effort to hide their illegals in schools, in churches, in apartments, in homes, in empty buildings, in etc.
https://chicago.suntimes.com/immigration/2025/01/27/chicago-immigration-ice-raid-monday
— Congressional panel calls Johnson, other sanctuary city mayors to testify about ‘’obstructionist policies’  The mayors of Chicago, Boston, Denver and New York were also asked to hand over all documents and communications related to their cities’ sanctuary status, including those between each city, non-governmental organizations and state officials.
https://chicago.suntimes.com/immigration/2025/01/27/mayor-brandon-johnson-house-oversight-committee-sanctuary-city-immigration-deportation
— Chicago’s immigration sweeps have restaurant and food industry employers feeling anxious (COMMENT: I washed dishes for the minimum wage in Chicago Heights during my junior and senior years in high school and the summer in between. If there had been as many illegals back then as there are now, one of them would have gotten that job. That job enabled me to earn and save enough money to buy a new car before I graduated, a car that I used to commute to/from classes at UIC and my parents’ home in Crete.)
https://chicago.suntimes.com/small-business/2025/01/27/chicago-immigration-sweeps-restaurant-food-industry-employers-feeling-anxious

DAILY HERALD
— FRONT PAGE TOP OF FOLD WITH PHOTO: An ‘unwavering’ public servant: Republican state Sen. Dan McConchie resigning
https://www.dailyherald.com/20250127/illinois-state-politics/republican-state-sen-dan-mcconchie-resigning/
— Judge denies request to delay ballot in Glendale Heights case
https://www.dailyherald.com/20250127/local-politics/judge-denies-request-to-delay-ballot-in-glendale-heights-case/
— Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton launching PAC to help potential Senate bid if Durbin does not run again (COMMENT: Stratton was among the first customers to purchase cannabis when Illinois began recreational sale of the drug on January 1, 2020. SEE: https://www.google.com/search?q=%22+Juliana+Stratton%22+illinois+pot )
https://www.dailyherald.com/20250127/illinois-state-politics/lt-gov-juliana-stratton-launching-pac-to-help-potential-senate-bid-if-durbin-does-not-run-again/
— FRONT PAGE TOP OF FOLD WITH BIG PICTURES: Democrat leaders have concluded that the only way that they can regain the White House, U.S. Senate, and/or U.S. House is a) to bring in many more millions of their illegals and b) to stop Trump from deporting any of the many millions that they have already brought in. Democrat leaders have declared a Second Civil War against Republicans and illegals are their soldiers in their Democrat Army. Anticipate/expect ever-increasing Democrat effort to hide their illegals in schools, in churches, in apartments, in homes, in empty buildings, in etc.
https://www.dailyherald.com/20250127/news/suburban-police-navigating-conflicting-state-federal-directives-on-immigration-crackdown/

CRAIN’S CHICAGO BUSINESS
— Chicago restaurants on guard against ICE (COMMENT: While I was a junior and senior in high school in the 1960s, I washed dishes. Previously, I did yard work and delivered newspapers. Subsequently, I cleaned golf shoes, chipped slag, and pumped gasoline. If there had been as many illegals back then as there are now, they would have gotten the jobs that I got.)
https://www.chicagobusiness.com/restaurants/chicago-restaurants-guard-against-ice-raids

CHAMPAIGN/URBANA NEWS GAZETTE
— Immigration officers say ‘the worst go first,’ but now there’s no ‘free pass’  A week into Donald Trump’s second presidency and his efforts to crack down on illegal immigration, federal officers are operating with a new sense of mission.
https://www.news-gazette.com/news/nation-world/immigration-officers-say-the-worst-go-first-but-now-theres-no-free-pass/article_cc43b763-e646-5580-9893-6b84c18b0887.html

EFFINGHAM DAILY NEWS
— Indiana border bill energizes Illinois movement to create nation’s 51st state
https://www.effinghamdailynews.com/news/local_news/indiana-border-bill-energizes-illinois-movement-to-create-nations-51st-state/article_68fa04f4-80bc-5935-8725-72644c8b520c.html

RIVER BENDER
— Democrat leaders oppose deportation of their illegals because Democrats have declared a Second Civil War on Republicans and illegals are their soldiers in their Democrat Army. To come into a country illegally and/or to stay in a country illegally is to demonstrate gross disrespect for the rule of law and for that country.
https://www.riverbender.com/news/details/durbin-duckworth-statement-on-trumps-mass-deportation-actions-in-chicago-79137.cfm?

NPR ILLINOIS
— Trump signs executive order taking aim at DEI programs in the military
https://www.nprillinois.org/2025-01-28/trump-signs-executive-order-taking-aim-at-dei-programs-in-the-military

WGLT
— Anticipate/expect that illegals will ever-increasingly hide out in schools and in churches.
https://www.wglt.org/2025-01-27/how-districts-are-responding-after-trump-cleared-the-way-for-immigration-arrests-at-schools

WAND TV
— After-school program providers, parents demand Pritzker admin release grant funding (COMMENT: What did you do while you were in high school? I did yard work 1962-1964, delivered newspapers 1962-1966, and washed dishes 1964-1966.)
https://www.wandtv.com/news/after-school-program-providers-parents-demand-pritzker-admin-release-grant-funding/article_ee616956-dcf9-11ef-9612-5f6443e958ea.html

WCIA
— Illinois prohibits discrimination on reproductive health decisions with law effective Jan. 1 (COMMENT: All my Democrat GAO superiors and superiors had children and they all painted themselves as being disadvantaged by that big time. They all held it against me big time that my wife and I gave up trying to have children. According to them, if my wife and I had children, I would not have been able to a) pass the CPA examination on my first attempt in 1979, b) earn a master’s degree in accounting from DePaul in 1980, c) pass the Certified Internal Auditor examination on my first attempt and become a licensed CPA in 1981, d) earn four more professional certifications in 1990, 1994, 1996, and 1997, or e) earn a master’s degree in financial markets and trading from IIT in 1997. Their wives did not have a good paying job like mine did and they were furiously envious about that.)
https://www.msn.com/en-us/health/other/illinois-prohibits-discrimination-on-reproductive-health-decisions-with-law-effective-jan-1/ar-AA1wx7sm

25 NEWS NOW
— Reagan Deering (R) of Decatur introduces bill banning transgender student-athletes (COMMENT: Transgender athletes should only be allowed to compete against other transgender athletes.)
https://www.25newsnow.com/2025/01/28/republican-illinois-lawmaker-introduces-transgender-student-athlete-ban-bill/

BATAVIA PATCH
— Democrats push pot in Batavia
https://patch.com/illinois/batavia/1st-recreational-cannabis-dispensary-open-batavia

BLOCK CLUB CHICAGO
— GOP Wants Chicago Mayor To Testify At Congressional Hearing On Sanctuary Cities. It’s unclear if Mayor Brandon Johnson will attend the Feb. 11 hearing on Capitol Hill. (COMMENT: To be a sanctuary city is to reject America’s immigration laws.)
https://blockclubchicago.org/2025/01/27/gop-wants-chicago-mayor-to-testify-at-congressional-hearing-on-sanctuary-cities/

POLITICO ILLINOIS
— Democrat leaders ever-increasingly promote Durbin and those who might run for his office if he does not run again.
https://www.politico.com/newsletters/illinois-playbook/2025/01/28/congressional-panel-calls-chicago-mayor-to-testify-on-obstructionist-policies-00200919

CAPITOL FAX
— Morning briefing
https://capitolfax.com/2025/01/28/isabel%e2%80%99s-morning-briefing-444/
— Afternoon roundup
https://capitolfax.com/2025/01/27/isabel%e2%80%99s-afternoon-roundup-236/
— Morning briefing
https://capitolfax.com/2025/01/27/isabel%e2%80%99s-morning-briefing-443/

FROM ILLINOIS CENTER-RIGHT SOURCES

ILLINOIS GOP
One Week of President Trump
— PRESS RELEASE: It’s been one week of President Trump’s America First agenda and a lot of great policies that improve the lives of Illinois residents went into effect. See for yourself what President Trump did in week one: Declared a national emergency at our southern border; Ended catch-and-release and reinstated the Remain in Mexico policy; Realigned foreign aid to better align with American interests; Returned to America First and Peace through Strength policies; Directed agencies to implement policies that lower the cost of living; Revoked the electric vehicle mandate; Ended DEI mandates across government; and Rescinded 78 Biden-era executive actions. Bottom Line: It’s been just over one week with President Trump back in office and America and Illinois are trending in the right direction. Over the next four years, President Trump will continue to work for the American people to secure our border, fix our economy and Make America Great Again!
https://illinois.gop/category/news/
— PRESS RELEASE: When Will IL Dems Retract Their ICE Lies?
https://illinois.gop/category/news/

GOPUSA ILLINOIS
— Democrat leaders have concluded that the only way that they can regain the White House, U.S. Senate, and/or U.S. House is a) to bring in many more millions of their illegals and b) to stop Trump from deporting any of the many millions that they have already brought in. Democrat leaders have declared a Second Civil War against Republicans and illegals are their soldiers in their Democrat Army. Anticipate/expect ever-increasing Democrat effort to hide their illegals in schools, in churches, in apartments, in homes, in empty buildings, in etc. – Dave Diersen
http://www.gopillinois.com
— What discourages conservatives, that is, platform Republicans, from becoming/remaining Republican Precinct Committeemen in Illinois, in DuPage County and in Milton Township? They see how the leaders of the Illinois Republican Party (IRP), DuPage County Republican Central Committee (DCRCC), and Milton Township Republican Organization (MTRO) have treated conservatives like me since 2000, that is, how they have treated platform Republicans like me since 2000. IRP, DCRCC, and MTRO leaders have taken many/big adverse actions against me since 2000. They blame me and my GOPUSA ILLINOIS newsletters for all the losses that Republican candidates on ballots in my precinct have suffered since 2000. – Dave Diersen
http://www.gopillinois.com
— What things do you look forward to this year? I look forward to taking my mind off politics by taking delivery of the red 2025 Dodge Charger Daytona R/T (SEE: https://www.dodge.com/charger.html ) that I have ordered and showing it at Iron Gate Motor Condos events. The first event this years is Fiesta Fest on May 10. SEE: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/iron-gate-motor-condos-association-fiesta-fest-tickets-1217214905549  Please let me know if you share my interests in Chargers, Corvettes, Mustangs, and Thunderbirds. – Dave Diersen
http://www.gopillinois.com
— What if the Illinois Republican Party, DuPage County Republican Central Committee, and/or Milton Township Republican Organization (MTRO) asked me to serve as its webmaster? I published MTRO’s first website in 2000 and served as its webmaster 2000-2004 and 2008-2010. I published Milton Township’s first website in 2001 and served as its webmaster 2001-2003. I published Illinois Center Right Coalition’s first website in 2003 and served as its webmaster 2003-2007. I published TAPROOT Republicans of Illinois’ first website in in 2005 and served as its webmaster 2005-2012. – Dave Diersen
http://www.gopillinois.com

ILLINOIS REVIEW
— Homer Glen GOP Under Siege: Democrats and RINOs Collude to Undermine Conservative Slate (COMMENT: My critics/opponents in the Milton Township Republican Organization, DuPage County Republican Central Committee, and Illinois Republican Party are RINOs. They are anti-conservative if not conservative-haters. I should write about them. I would focus on those who falsely paint themselves as being religious, conservative, and/or Republican. I would focus on those who have taken the most/biggest adverse actions against me recently.)
https://www.illinoisreview.com/illinoisreview/2025/01/homer-glen-gop-under-siege-democrats-and-rinos-collude-to-undermine-conservative-slate.html
(FROM THE ARTICLE: As Homer Glen prepares for the February 25th Republican Primary, local Democrats and establishment Republicans appear to be working together to undermine a conservative slate – an unprecedented alliance that threatens to derail years of principled leadership in this conservative stronghold. The Homer Township Democrats recently shared a Facebook post by Mayor Christina Neitzke-Troike, encouraging residents to request Republican ballots to participate in the primary. The message specifically highlighted the presence of two Republican slates and implied that voting against the conservative slate – led by Steve Balich – is a priority. Mayor Neitzke-Troike has also come under fire for her handling of this contentious election. Following a heated exchange between supporters of the two slates on her Facebook page, the mayor decided to turn off comments entirely, citing negativity and trolling as her reasoning. However, this decision raises serious ethical and legal questions. As an elected official, Neitzke-Troike has a duty to provide transparency and facilitate open dialogue with her constituents. By silencing public discussion and turning off comments on her official page, she may be infringing on her constituents’ rights to engage with their elected representative. Legal experts have pointed out that her actions could potentially violate the First Amendment, which protects free speech, as well as Illinois state law. Specifically, the Illinois Open Meetings Act (OMA) requires that public officials conduct their duties in a transparent and accountable manner. While the OMA primarily applies to formal meetings, it underscores the principle that elected officials must not obstruct public participation or suppress communication with their constituents. Furthermore, there are growing concerns that her decision to hide or disable comments may constitute a violation of the Illinois Governmental Ethics Act, which mandates that public officials avoid conduct that diminishes public confidence in the integrity of government. Critics argue that an elected official using social media to communicate with the public has an obligation to allow citizens to voice their opinions and concerns. Shutting down comments on public platforms undermines the trust between officials and residents, especially during a critical election season. Homer Glen is one of only two townships in Illinois with a primary for the consolidated election.)

ILLINOIS POLICY INSTITUTE
— Illinois school boards should provide opportunities to all kids in their districts (COMMENT: My parents sent me to Trinity Lutheran Grade School in Crete 1953-1961 and then to Hope Lutheran Grade School in Park Forest 1961-1962 to stay with the Missouri Synod.)
https://www.illinoispolicy.org/illinois-school-boards-should-provide-opportunities-to-all-kids-in-their-districts/

MCHENRYCOUNTY BLOG
— Senator Dan McConchie Resigning
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2025/01/27/senator-dan-mcconchie-resigning/
— Wilcox Files “No Tax on Tips” Bill
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2025/01/27/wilcox-files-no-tax-on-tips-bill/
— Legislative Wish Fulfillment
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2025/01/27/legislative-wish-fulfillment/
— In the “Don’t Get Your Hopes Up” Category
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2025/01/27/in-the-dont-get-your-hopes-up-category/
— Dems Promote Immigration Seminar at Junior College
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2025/01/27/demos-promote-immigration-seminar/
— Projected 2025 McHenry County Employee Compensation: To-Vi
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2025/01/25/projected-2025-mchenry-county-employee-compensation-to-vi/
— Projected 2025 McHenry County Employee Compensation: Vi-Wi
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2025/01/26/projected-2025-mchenry-county-employee-compensation-vi-wi/
— That Revelation of Execution Session Info Pops Up Again
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2025/01/26/that-revelation-of-execution-session-info-pops-up-again/
— Steve Reich Presents Analysis of the Current Pension Crisis
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2025/01/26/steve-reich-presents-analysis-of-the-current-pension-crisis/

FROM NATIONAL CENTER-RIGHT SOURCES

WASHINGTON TIMES
— House opens investigation into four sanctuary cities. Boston, New York, Denver, Chicago face questions protecting illegal immigrants.
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2025/jan/27/house-opens-investigation-four-sanctuary-cities/
— GOP senators roll out ‘Wall Act,’ seek to help Trump fulfill his border vision
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2025/jan/27/gop-senators-roll-wall-act-seek-help-trump-fulfill/
— Trump deploys the Alien Enemies Act. The law has repeatedly passed muster at the Supreme Court.
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2025/jan/27/trump-deploys-alien-enemies-act/
— White House orders freeze on ‘all federal financial assistance’ besides Social Security and Medicare. (COMMENT: Social Security and Medicare are not financial assistance. I paid into Social Security and Medicare.)
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2025/jan/27/trump-freezes-federal-aid-grants/
— Supreme Court rejects Biden voter’s insurrection clause challenge to Trump presidency
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2025/jan/27/supreme-court-rejects-biden-voter-joe-alter-insurr/

WASHINGTON EXAMINER
— Democratic disinformation will ramp up during Trump’s second term
https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/3301674/democratic-disinformation-will-increase-trump-second-term/
— Senior DOJ official quits after being assigned to target sanctuary cities (COMMENT: While I worked for the Democrats who ran IRS and GAO, Democrat Affirmative Action and DEI laws required me to give preference big time to my Democrat subordinates who were minority, female, younger, disabled, and/or veteran. Virtually all my subordinates were problematic in one way or the other. But I nevertheless gave them big time preference. But that was not enough for my Democrat superiors. They wanted to get rid of me so that they could give my job to one of my subordinates.)
https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/policy/immigration/3301788/senior-doj-official-quits-assigned-target-sanctuary-cities/

NEW YORK POST
— Catholic Charities draws fire over video coaching illegal migrants on how to duck ICE workplace probes
https://nypost.com/2025/01/27/us-news/catholic-charities-draws-fire-over-video-coaching-illegal-migrants-on-how-to-duck-ice/

BLAZE
— Trump moves to deport 1.4 million migrants admitted under Biden’s parole programs (COMMENT: Everyone has always know that Biden’s parole program was illegal.)
https://www.theblaze.com/news/trump-moves-to-deport-1-4-million-migrants-admitted-under-biden-s-parole-programs

BUZZ FEED
— 22 Unbelievable Things People Have Seen Rich Parents Do For Their Kids (COMMENT: I had to work my way through college. 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, and worked on an automobile assembly line in 1970.)
https://www.buzzfeed.com/scarymouse/wild-things-upper-class-parents-do-for-their-kids

CAMPUS REFORM
— McDonald’s faces lawsuit for limiting college scholarship eligibility strictly to Latinos and Hispanics (COMMENT: What if Affirmative Action and DEI were only for those whose parents did not have college degrees?)
https://www.campusreform.org/article/mcdonalds-faces-lawsuit-limiting-college-scholarship-eligibility-strictly-latinos-hispanics/27352

CENTER SQUARE
— GOP senators file POLICE Act to deport those who assault law enforcement officers
https://www.thecentersquare.com/national/article_f2e121ea-dd78-11ef-9037-ef71d64bd7f4.html
— In less than a week, ICE agents make nearly 1,000 arrests nationwide
https://www.thecentersquare.com/national/article_82223158-dcfe-11ef-a6d0-6b06908f30be.html

DAILY WIRE
— Brazil Slams Trump Admin For Shipping Illegals Back In Handcuffs. Handcuffing illegal immigrants on deportation flights has been standard practice by the U.S. government, including under the Biden administration. (COMMENT: It is illegal a) to come into a country illegally and b) to stay in a country illegally.)
https://www.dailywire.com/news/brazil-slams-trump-admin-for-shipping-illegals-back-in-handcuffs

EPOCH TIMES
— Trump Signs Executive Orders Restricting Transgender Troops, Ending Military DEI Practices
https://www.theepochtimes.com/us/trump-signs-executive-orders-restricting-transgender-troops-ending-military-dei-practices-5799359

FEDERALIST SOCIETY
— Trump Issues Executive Order Revoking Biden’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Rules and Axing Affirmative Action (COMMENT: All my Democrat superiors always used Affirmative Action and DEI against me. All my coworkers who they promoted over me a) had less work experience than I had, had less education than I had, had no professional certifications or fewer than I had, and/or had no professional license like the one I had and/or b) were minority, female, younger than me, veteran, non-Protestant, non-German American, and/or had ancestors who had not been in America for a long time.)
https://fedsoc.org/commentary/fedsoc-blog/bye-bye-dei-president-trump-issues-executive-order-revoking-biden-s-diversity-equity-and-inclusion-rules-and-axing-affirmative-action

FEDERATION FOR AMERICAN IMMIGRATION REFORM
— President Trump Shuts Down CBP One App; New Data Reveals Hundreds of Thousands of Illegal Aliens Were in the Pipeline
https://www.fairus.org/news/executive/president-trump-shuts-down-cbp-one-app-new-data-reveals-hundreds-thousands-illegal

FOX BUSINESS
— Pritzker is ‘trying to muddle two different topics,’ sheriff says. Terrell County, Texas, Sheriff Thaddeus Cleveland weighs in on Illinois Gov. Pritzker threatening opposition to President Donald Trump’s mass deportation plan.
https://www.foxbusiness.com/video/6367843313112

FOX NEWS
— Illinois ‘super mayor’ conducted ‘systematic’ cover-up of excessive spending, Lightfoot investigation finds. Dolton Mayor Tiffany Henyard is hounded by financial troubles.
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/illinois-super-mayor-conducted-systematic-cover-up-excessive-spending-lightfoot-investigation-finds
— Homan demands apology from Illinois governor over ‘lie’ that ICE targeted Chicago school: ‘Sowing fear’  Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker elevated false claim of ICE agents targeting Chicago school.
https://www.foxnews.com/media/homan-demands-apology-from-illinois-governor-over-lie-ice-targeted-chicago-school-sowing-fear
— Chicago PD says it ‘will not assist’ with upcoming ICE deportations
https://www.aol.com/chicago-pd-says-not-assist-003849923.html
— ‘Side-by-side’: Texas deploys hundreds of troops, choppers to help Trump tackle border crisis. The move is the latest troop deployment to the southern border.
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/texas-deploys-hundreds-troops-choppers-help-trump-tackle-border-crisis
— Comer launches investigation of sanctuary cities, asks mayors to testify. Rep. James Comer has asked the mayors of Boston, Chicago, Denver and New York City to testify before lawmakers on the effectiveness of sanctuary city policies.
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/comer-launches-investigation-sanctuary-cities-asks-mayors-testify
— Trump administration carries out multiple raids targeting ‘criminal aliens’ in first weekend. ICE agents rounded up illegal immigrants across the US.
https://www.foxnews.com/us/trump-administration-carries-out-multiple-raids-targeting-criminal-aliens-first-weekend
— GOP lawmaker rallies behind Trump’s rapid illegal immigration crackdown: ‘No time to waste’ (COMMENT: Are your GOP lawmakers rallying behind Trump’s rapid illegal immigration crackdown?)
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/freshman-gop-lawmaker-rallies-behind-trumps-rapid-illegal-immigration-crackdown

LEGAL INSURRECTION
— Biden Admin Spent $15 Million to Provide Contraceptives, Condoms in Afghanistan
https://legalinsurrection.com/2025/01/biden-admin-spent-15-million-to-provide-contraceptives-condoms-in-afghanistan/

MRC TV
— Illegals Waving Foreign Flags Descend on ICE Building As Trump Rounds Up Criminals
https://www.mrctv.org/blog/brittany-m-hughes/illegals-waving-foreign-flags-descend-ice-building-trump-rounds-criminals

NEWSMAX
— ICE Confirms Operation Against Illegal Migrants in Chicago
https://www.newsmax.com/us/ice-operations-chicago/2025/01/26/id/1196611/
— House Opens Investigation Into Four Sanctuary Cities: New York, Chicago, Denver, and Boston
https://www.newsmax.com/newsfront/house-oversight-investigation/2025/01/27/id/1196722/

PJ MEDIA
— Catholic Charities Lies to Illegals to Aid Them Against ICE
https://pjmedia.com/catherinesalgado/2025/01/27/catholic-charities-lies-to-illegals-to-aid-them-against-ice-n4936400

WESTERN JOURNAL
— Dr. Phil and Tom Homan Personally Rounding Up Illegals, Bring in Child Sex Predator
https://www.westernjournal.com/watch-dr-phil-tom-homan-personally-rounding-illegals-bring-child-sex-predator/

FROM NATIONAL CENTER-LEFT SOURCES

THE HILL
— Dems Call Trump’s Mass Firings Of Inspectors General A ‘Chilling Purge’, Is The Move Illegal?  (COMMENT: If the IGs were independent, they would have offered me jobs when my GAO superiors forced me to retire when I was 49 years old in 1997.)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZrzAUqaeEtQ

NEWSWEEK
— Homan Accuses Pritzker of ‘Scaring Children’ with School Targeting Claims (COMMENT: How successful has Pritzker been in your school district promoting hatred against Trump and promoting hatred against the rule of law? Ever-increasingly, Pritzker is a modern day George Wallace. SEE: https://www.emersonkent.com/speeches/school_house_door_speech.htm )
https://www.newsweek.com/tom-homan-jb-pritzker-immigration-ice-raids-school-2021432

TIME
—  The Human Cost of Trump Firing All Federal DEI Workers (COMMENT: I should write about the “human cost” of my Democrat GAO, IRS, and Post Office superiors’ use of Affirmative Action and DEI to waste my career and to force me to retire when I was 49 years old in 1997.)
https://time.com/7210295/cost-trump-firing-dei-workers/

ASSOCIATED PRESS
— Fast food is a staple of American culture, but some of its workers struggle to survive (COMMENT: During the 1960s, while I was in high school, I worked in fast food in Chicago Heights for the minimum wage part-time for 15 months and full-time for 3 months. With the money that I earned and saved, I bought a new 1966 Pontiac Tempest Sprint in May of 1966 that I used to commute to/from classes at UIC and my parents’ home in Crete.)
https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/markets/fast-food-is-a-staple-of-american-culture-but-some-of-its-workers-struggle-to-survive/ar-AA1xQtxz
— Hundreds of US visa appointments canceled in Colombia following spat with Trump over deportations
https://apnews.com/article/colombia-visas-deportation-flights-trump-tariffs-d98900b9626bc481daebe0561d8889e8

REUTERS
— Democrat leaders force Blacks to promote DEI.
https://www.reuters.com/business/retail-consumer/black-owned-brands-urge-us-consumers-not-boycott-target-over-end-diversity-2025-01-28/

MSN
— Democrats have declared a Second Civil War against Republicans. Pritzker stands with foreign countries that illegally send their citizens illegally into America illegally. Those illegals are soldiers in the Democrat Army.
https://www.msn.com/en-gb/money/other/video-jb-pritzker-on-trump-s-deportations-we-re-going-to-stand-in-the-way-of-an-unconstitutional-order/ar-AA1xTS6s

MSNBC
— The chilling message behind Trump’s latest firing spree. Congress created the first inspector general position in 1976 in an era of post-Watergate reform. Trump’s recent move to fire 18 of the 73 positions flies in the face of that tradition. (COMMENT: If the IGs were independent, they would have offered me jobs when my GAO superiors forced me to retire when I was 49 years old in 1997.)
https://www.msnbc.com/opinion/msnbc-opinion/trump-firing-inspectors-general-undermine-government-accountability-rcna189459

NEW YORK TIMES
— Vance Defends Immigration Crackdown as Arrests Begin in Chicago
https://www.nytimes.com/live/2025/01/26/us/trump-news-updates
— Fired Inspectors General Raise Alarms as Trump Administration Moves to Finalize Purge. The full scope of the Friday night mass firings was coming into sharper view as one fired watchdog official warned of “a never-ending cycle of politicization.” (COMMENT: If the IGs were independent, they would have offered me jobs when my GAO superiors forced me to retire when I was 49 years old in 1997.)
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/01/27/us/politics/trump-inspectors-general-fired.html

WASHINGTON POST
— Why government needs independent inspectors general. By keeping an eye out for waste and fraud, they make efficiency possible. (COMMENT: If the IGs were independent, they would have offered me jobs when my GAO superiors forced me to retire when I was 49 years old in 1997.)
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2025/01/27/trump-inspector-general-igs-fired/
— DOJ fires officials who worked on Jack Smith’s Trump investigations (COMMENT: Democrats do not want Republicans to audit Democrats. My Democrat IRS and GAO superiors were furious when the GAO manager who had arranged for my transfer from IRS in 1980 was finally able to assign me to audits of IRS and promote me in 1986. They forced him to retire in 1987. They threw me off audits of IRS at the end of 1988. They gave me a very bad audit assignment, unfair performance expectations and evaluation, and ranked me at the bottom of my coworkers for pay-for-performance (PFP) in 1989. They made it clear that they would never again assign me to audits of IRS. They always ranked me in the bottom half of my coworkers for PFP. They forced me to retire in 1997 when I was 49 years old.)
https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2025/01/27/doj-firings-trump-jack-smith-officials/

WALL STREET JOURNAL
— DEI is not dead, it is going under the table and off the books.
https://www.wsj.com/podcasts/the-journal/is-dei-done/ba50d490-d16e-4b3e-8894-a33c204843ee

POLITICO
— Trump administration orders sweeping freeze of federal aid (COMMENT: To what extent are those in Illinois, your county, your township, your municipality, your school district, and your precinct dependent on a) federal aid, b) state aid, c) township aid, d) municipal aid, and e) school district aid?)
https://www.politico.com/news/2025/01/27/trump-freezes-federal-aid-omb-00200891

NEWSER
— Pritzker: I’ll ‘Stand in the Way’ of Illegal Trump Orders. He says feds shouldn’t be going after ‘law-abiding’ people with jobs, families. (COMMENT: How successful has Pritzker been in your school district promoting hatred against Trump and promoting hatred against the rule of law? Ever-increasingly, Pritzker is a modern day George Wallace. SEE: https://www.emersonkent.com/speeches/school_house_door_speech.htm )
https://www.newser.com/story/363239/pritzker-ill-stand-in-the-way-of-illegal-trump-orders.html

HARVARD KENNEDY SCHOOL
— Are “bad jobs” dead ends or steppingstones to better things?  (COMMENT: According to my critics/opponents, all the jobs that I had were bad jobs that they would never stoop to take. But those jobs were stepping stones for me to earn a) a job-related bachelor’s degree, b) three job-related master’s degrees, c) six job-related professional certifications, and d) a job related professional license.)
https://www.hks.harvard.edu/faculty-research/policy-topics/social-policy/are-bad-jobs-dead-ends-or-steppingstones-better-things

INC.
— Summertime Opportunity: Packing Wealthy Parents’ Kids Off to Camp (COMMENT: My critics/opponents have always outrageously, disgustingly, and falsely painted my parents as having been filthy rich. My critics/opponents ignored/dismissed/belittled 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, and worked on an automobile assembly line in 1970. They ignored/dismissed/belittled that I had to work my way through college. I should write about my critics/opponents. I would focus on those whose parents had the most money.)
https://www.inc.com/bruce-crumley/summertime-opportunity-packing-wealthy-parents-kids-off-to-camp.html

TECH TARGET
— What is a webmaster? (COMMENT: What if the Illinois Republican Party, DuPage County Republican Central Committee, and/or Milton Township Republican Organization (MTRO) asked me to serve as its webmaster? I served as the MTRO webmaster 2000-2004 and 2008-2010. I published Milton Township’s first website in 2001 and served as its webmaster 2001-2003. I served as the Illinois Center Right Coalition webmaster 2003-2007 and as the TAPROOT Republicans of Illinois webmaster 2005-2012.)
https://www.techtarget.com/whatis/definition/Webmaster
(FROM THE ARTICLE:  A webmaster is someone who creates and manages the content and organization of a website, manages the computer server and technical programming aspects of a website, or does both. Webmasters are often perceived as the website’s administrators who wear many hats to ensure the website runs seamlessly. What does a webmaster do? What a webmaster does varies significantly depending on the company’s size, industry niche, etc. However, most webmasters are responsible for two or more of the following: Content management. Design and functionality. Performance monitoring. Technical upkeep.)

BENEFITS PRO
— Trump shuts down ‘radical and wasteful’ federal DEI programs. Many of the nation’s largest employers have pulled back on DEI initiatives while others have doubled down. (COMMENT: Democrat and RINO employers are not pulling back on DEI. They are putting DEI under the table and off the books.)
https://www.benefitspro.com/2025/01/27/trump-shuts-down-radical-and-wasteful-federal-dei-programs/

BENEFIT NEWS
— 25 best jobs in 2025 (COMMENT: According to my critics/opponents, all the jobs that I had were bad jobs that they would never stoop to take. 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 automobile assembly line in 1970, sold tires, automotive services, and major appliances 1970-1971, pumped gasoline 1971-1972, collected delinquent taxes 1971-1980, and audited federal agencies 1980-1997. All my critics/opponents had parents who had way more money than mine had.)
https://www.benefitnews.com/list/25-best-jobs-in-2025-for-pay-advancement-work-life-balance
(FROM THE ARTICLE: The top-ranking job is nurse practitioner, with a median salary of $126,260, and 135,500 projected jobs in 2025. Nurse practitioners perform many of the same tasks as physicians and these positions require a master’s degree. Other top jobs are IT manager and physician assistant. IT managers have a median salary of $169,510, have 106,900 projected jobs in 2025 and require a bachelor’s degree. Physician assistants have a median salary of $130,020, have 43,700 projected jobs in 2025 and require a master’s degree. Of the top 25 jobs, 10 are in healthcare or healthcare related industries, six are in technology, three are in business, three are in social services, one is in sales and marketing, one is in engineering, and one is in maintenance and repair.)

GOOGLE AI
— A problematic employee is someone who consistently acts in a way that is harmful to the company or its employees. They may have poor job performance, be uncooperative, or be resistant to change. (COMMENT: All the employees who my Democrat GAO superiors assigned me to supervise 1980-1997 were problematic in one way or the other.)
https://www.google.com/search?q=%22problematic+employee%22+definition

GUARDIAN
— Parental income determines our life chances (COMMENT: 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 died suddenly when he was 47 and I was 21. My mother never attended high school.)
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2024/dec/29/wealthy-parents-greatest-asset-is-the-assets-they-will-pass-on
(FROM THE ARTICLE: Parents shape our lives. On the financial side, academics focus on intergenerational income persistence (how much parental income determines our own) and its inverse (social mobility).)

DAILY MAIL
— CNN slammed for VERY selective reporting of Chicago migrant raids by outraged locals
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-14331057/cnn-slammed-selective-reporting-chicago-migrant-raids.html