Tag: political

FROM ILLINOIS CENTER-LEFT SOURCES

ABC7
— 20 Democratic-led states sued the Trump administration on Monday for withholding more than $6 billion in federal funds for several education programs nationwide. Many low-income families will lose access to after-school programs if the money isn’t released soon. What did you do while you were in high school? During my freshman and sophomore years, I did yard work. During all 4 years, I delivered newspapers. During my junior and senior years, I washed dishes.
https://abc7chicago.com/post/boys-girls-club-programs-threatened-trump-grant-freeze-serve-thousands-families/17116784/
— Family raises questions about death of father found unresponsive at Naperville’s Centennial Beach. The family of 27-year-old Streamwood man Manuel Jose Rosales Yajure believes the lifeguards didn’t do enough.
https://abc7chicago.com/post/manuel-jose-rosales-yajure-identified-streamwood-man-died-found-centennial-beach-naperville-police-department/17117110/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GW-mqsxAuUw

NBC5
— These Republicans could challenge Gov. JB Pritzker’s reelection bid. The first day petitions can be submitted for the March primary will arrive early next month.
https://www.nbcchicago.com/news/local/chicago-politics/these-republicans-could-challenge-gov-jb-pritzkers-reelection-bid/3789070/
https://www.nbcchicago.com/news/local/video-republican-field-takes-shape-to-oppose-pritzker-reelection-bid/3789117/
(FROM THE ARTICLE: So far, DuPage County Sheriff James Mendrick and businessman Joe Severino have announced they intend to run for the Republican gubernatorial nomination, but they could be joined by several others, including Rep. Darin LaHood, who is weighing options between a bid for the governor’s mansion or the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Sen. Dick Durbin. His team told NBC Chicago Political Reporter Mary Ann Ahern that he is still weighing his options ahead of the Aug. 5 start of the petition season. Aaron Del Mar, former lieutenant governor candidate and the chairman of the Cook County Republican Party, is also weighing a potential run, and he says he sees a path forward for any candidate seeking to deny Pritzker a third term in office. “There is a strong donor base, but you just need to talk to them and convince them that this state is worth investing in,” he said. “There are some concerns about running against the richest elected official in the United States. Illinois is worth saving, and worth investing in, and somebody needs to put Illinois first, and our campaign will display that same motto in action.” Ted Dabrowski, president of the media outlet Wirepoints, which focuses on economic and government issues in Illinois, is also considering a run, reaching out to donors as part of that effort, according to Ahern’s reporting.)
— Who has the advantage in the race for Dick Durbin’s Senate seat?  Three Democrats are vying for the seat, while the Republican primary remains largely up in the air. One could compare and contrast the Illinois Republican U.S. Senate 2004 primary ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2004_United_States_Senate_election_in_Illinois ) with the 2026 primary. All five announced candidates  (John Cox, Chirinjeev Kathuria, Andrew McKenna, Jim Oberweis, and  Jack Ryan) walked in Wheaton’s 2003 Independence Day parade and then attended a picnic in the Prairie Path Park in my precinct. My critics/opponents were not only furious that Ryan won the primary instead of their candidate McKenna, they blamed me for McKenna’s defeat. I was not only the GOPUSA Illinois Editor, I was also an officer of the Illinois Center Right Coalition and TAPROOT Republicans of Illinois. Neither organization endorsed McKenna. Ryan withdrew after he won the primary and then the Illinois Republican Party State Central Committee replaced him with Alan Keyes who lost to Obama.
https://www.nbcchicago.com/news/local/who-has-the-advantage-in-the-race-for-dick-durbins-senate-seat/3789209/
(FROM THE ARTICLE: On the other side of the aisle, several names have been floated on the Republican side to run for Durbin’s Senate seat. Insiders said Richard Porter is considering a bid. Porter’s largely been behind the scenes, working as a suburban attorney and former Republican national committeeman. He also worked for former President George W Bush’s administration as a domestic policy adviser to the president and counselor to former Vice President Dan Quayle. U.S. Rep. Darin LaHood is also eyeing the Senate race, but he would have to give up his congressional seat to do so. He has also been rumored to be eyeing a run for Illinois governor, but will make his decision in coming weeks. The last Illinois Republican to serve in the Senate was Mark Kirk. He lost re-election to Duckworth in 2016.)
— Democrats put aside previous misgivings to hit Trump over Jeffrey Epstein files
https://www.nbcchicago.com/news/national-international/democrats-trump-administration-jeffrey-epstein-files/3788972/
— Democrat leaders promote Rosie O’Donnell
https://www.nbcchicago.com/news/national-international/video-rosie-odonnell-reacts-donald-trump-threat-potentially-revoke-citizenship/3789125/

WTTW
— Democrat leaders ever-increasingly fight deportation of their illegals
https://news.wttw.com/2025/07/14/chicago-officials-call-identification-requirements-ice-agents-we-are-asking

CHICAGO TRIBUNE
— State Farm defends hefty 27.2% hike in Illinois homeowners insurance rates
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/07/14/state-farm-defends-illinois-homeowners-rate-increase/
— Supreme Court allows Trump to lay off nearly 1,400 Education Department employees. GAO works for Congress. Gingrich should have reformed GAO instead of gutting it. If he had reformed GAO, I might still be working for GAO. In any event, my Democrat GAO superiors would not have been able to a) force me to retire when I was 49 years old in 1997, b) always rank me in the bottom half of my coworkers for pay-for-performance, c) delay my promotions and never promote me beyond GS-13, d) keep me off audits of IRS except for 3 of the almost 18 years that I worked for GAO, 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.
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/07/14/trump-lay-off-education-employees/
— A city where every teen can find work — that should be the goal. I took the following jobs when I was a teen, but how many teens would take those jobs today? I did yard work. I delivered newspapers. I wash dishes. I cleaning golf shoes. I chipping slag. I pumping gasoline. I delivering mail. I had to work my way through college.
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/07/15/chicago-teen-summer-jobs/
— Wheaton 7-bedroom mansion with Tudor facade and 7 gables: $2M
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/07/15/wheaton-seven-gables-home/
(FROM THE ARTICLE: This 1897 Wheaton property built by architect Jarvis Hunt is called the House of Seven Gables and was commissioned as a wedding gift by Chicago steel magnate Jay Morse. Later known as the Loretto Convent, the mansion has a Tudor facade, hand-carved woodwork and seven distinctive gables. In 2017, the entire 10,000-square-foot, 730-ton structure was relocated 500 feet and placed on a new foundation. The house now has modern infrastructure, all-new mechanicals, including zoned central heating and air conditioning, and public utilities. In the Loretto subdivision, the home has seven bedrooms, six full bathrooms, one half-bath and a newly built, attached three-car garage. There is also an unfinished lower level with 10-foot ceilings.)

CHICAGO SUN-TIMES
— Pritzker orders state agencies to assess potential effects of more Trump tariffs. Officials told to figure out which industries are most vulnerable to trade disruptions.
https://chicago.suntimes.com/illinois-governor/2025/07/14/trump-tariffs-jb-pritzker-illinois-executive-order

DAILY HERALD
— Citing safety risks for election officials, McHenry County clerk seeking 35% pay hike
https://www.dailyherald.com/20250713/local-politics/citing-safety-risks-for-election-officials-mchenry-county-clerk-seeking-35-pay-hike/
— State Department firings say much about administration’s ‘reforms.’ If Gingrich had reformed GAO instead of gutting it, there would be no need for DOGE. The Democrats who ran GAO used Gingrich budget cuts to get rid of the agency’s Republican employees like me.
https://www.dailyherald.com/20250715/syndicated-columnists/state-department-firings-say-much-about-administrations-reforms/
— Why the races to succeed Krishnamoorthi, Schakowsky in Congress are packed
https://www.dailyherald.com/20250715/local-politics/why-the-races-to-succeed-krishnamoorthi-schakowsky-in-congress-are-packed/

CRAIN’S CHICAGO BUSINESS
— Democrat leaders ever-increasingly blame Republicans for problems that disabled people have.
https://www.chicagobusiness.com/elevate/chicago-disability-inclusion-accessibility
https://www.chicagobusiness.com/elevate/cook-county-forest-preserves-prioritize-accessible-amenities-opinion
— Pritzker signs executive order to analyze tariff impact on Illinois
https://www.chicagobusiness.com/politics/pritzker-orders-agencies-analyze-tariff-impact-illinois

WGN RADIO
— Is MAGA bigger than Trump?
https://wgnradio.com/wgn-plus/thechicagoway/chicago-way-w-john-kass-is-maga-bigger-than-trump/

SPRINGFIELD STATE JOURNAL REGISTER
— Democrat leaders ever-increasingly promote Pritzker
https://www.sj-r.com/story/news/politics/elections/2025/06/26/jb-pritzker-governor-of-illinois-running-for-third-term-state-visits-tour-june-26-2025-stops/84367606007/

SHAW LOCAL
— Democrat leaders ever-increasingly promote more protests against Trump
https://www.shawlocal.com/news/2025/07/14/good-trouble-lives-on-protests-in-northern-illinois-locations-times-what-you-need-to-know/

RIVER BENDER
— Duckworth Advances IVF Coverage for Military Families. If I ran for an office, my opponents would have Duckworth stress that I avoided the Vietnam War draft and that my wife and I gave up trying to have children without trying IVF.
https://www.riverbender.com/news/details/duckworth-secures-several-key-priorities-in-committeepassed-ndaa-to-expand-ivf-coverage-strengthen-oversight-of-domestic-military-deployments-boost-84307.cfm

SPRINGFIELD STATE JOURNAL REGISTER
— Pritzker signs executive order responding to impact of tariffs on Illinois
https://www.sj-r.com/story/news/state/2025/07/14/pritzker-signs-executive-order-responding-to-impact-of-tariffs-on-illinois/85199351007/

CHAMPAIGN/URBANA NEWS GAZETTE
— Supreme Court allows Trump to lay off nearly 1,400 Education Department employees. The Democrats who ran GAO used Gingrich budget cuts to get rid of more than 3,000 GAO employees including me, but they spread it out. Virtually all those who they got rid of were Republican, White, male, older, and/or non-veteran.
https://www.news-gazette.com/supreme-court-allows-trump-to-lay-off-nearly-1-400-education-department-employees/article_41642fbf-3c9e-5b23-b0a7-4e125be1d826.html

NPR ILLINOIS
— Republicans renew a bid to remove noncitizens from the census tally. Democrats have declared a Second Civil War against Republicans. Their illegals are their soldiers in their Democrat Army.
https://www.nprillinois.org/2025-07-15/republicans-renew-a-bid-to-remove-noncitizens-from-the-census-tally-behind-voting-maps

CAPITOL FAX
— Morning briefing
https://capitolfax.com/2025/07/15/isabel%e2%80%99s-morning-briefing-551/
— Afternoon roundup
https://capitolfax.com/2025/07/14/isabel%e2%80%99s-afternoon-roundup-344/

FROM ILLINOIS CENTER-RIGHT SOURCES

MCHENRY COUNTY BLOG
— Ibendahl: Time to Think about Getting Involved in Politics  Diersen: If you might be interested in becoming a Republican Precinct Committeeman in DuPage County, and especially in Milton Township and Wheaton, please contact me. I have been a Republican Precinct Committeeman in Wheaton since 1999.
https://www.mchenrycountyblog.com/2025/07/15/time-to-think-about-getting-involved-in-politics/

FROM NATIONAL CENTER-RIGHT SOURCES

WASHINGTON TIMES
— DOJ urges federal agencies to operate ‘exclusively in English’ as much as possible. To be eligible to vote in America, you must be an American citizen. To become a naturalized American citizen, you must be proficient in English.
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2025/jul/14/doj-urges-federal-agencies-operate-exclusively-english-much-possible/
— Biden autopen scandal ignites firestorm over cover-up of president’s mental fitness
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2025/jul/14/biden-aide-signed-autopen-pardons-thousands/

WASHINGTON EXAMINER
— IL construction workers highest paid in U.S. as new home building lags. My critics/opponents have always demonized me, denigrated me, and condemned me as being grossly overpaid. In today’s dollars, the federal government paid me $19.37/hour when I was 18, $55,850/year when I was 22, $68,315/year when I was 23, $82,655/year when I was 24, $99,069/year when I was 25, $112,280/year when I was 29, $117,807/year when I was 38, and $153.151/year when I was 49. In my defense, a) I earned a job-related bachelor’s degree when I was 21, b) I earned job-related master’s degrees when I was 27, 31, and 48, c) I earned job-related professional certifications when I was 30, 32, 41, 45, 47, and 48, and d) I earned a job-related professional license when I was 32.
https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/3470573/illinois-construction-workers-highest-paid-new-home-building-lags/

AMAC
— Trump Cracks Down on Colleges Giving Tuition Breaks to Illegal Aliens
https://amac.us/newsline/society/trump-cracks-down-on-colleges-giving-tuition-breaks-to-illegal-aliens/

AMERICAN THINKER
— Facts to ponder while most of the media peddles Democrat talking points
https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2025/07/facts_to_ponder_while_most_of_the_media_pedals_democrat_talking_points_to_destroy_trump_and_republicans_and_to_elect_democrats.html
— Is it wrong to arrest ‘non-criminal’ illegals? According to Democrat and RINO leaders, no one is illegal.
https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2025/07/is_it_wrong_to_arrest_non_criminal_illegals.html

BIZ PAC REVIEW
— MSNBC talking head says illegals could have ‘lawful’ right to use violence against ICE
https://www.bizpacreview.com/2025/07/14/msnbc-talking-head-says-illegals-could-have-lawful-right-to-use-violence-against-ice-1567671/

BLAZE
— Sanctuary cities fail — but Karen Bass keeps pushing the lie
https://www.theblaze.com/columns/opinion/sanctuary-cities-fail-but-karen-bass-keeps-pushing-the-lie

BREITBART
— Omar Fateh: Rep. Boebert Opposing Free College for Illegal Aliens Is ‘White Supremacy’ — So Is Policing
https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2025/07/14/omar-fateh-boebert-opposing-free-college-illegals-white-supremacy/

DAILY CALLER
— Detained Weed Farm Illegals Dems Rushed To Defend Actually Have Heinous Rap Sheets
https://dailycaller.com/2025/07/14/detained-california-weed-farm-illegals-heinous-rap-sheets-democrats/
— Lefty Groups Biden Showered In Taxpayer Cash Coaching Illegals To Evade ICE
https://dailycaller.com/2025/07/14/lefty-groups-biden-taxpayer-cash-coaching-illegals-ice/

DAILY WIRE
— Nearly 400 Illegals Arrested In Raid On California Pot Farm. Federal agents also “rescued at least 14 migrant children from what looks like exploitation, forced child labor, and potentially human trafficking…”
https://www.dailywire.com/news/nearly-400-illegals-arrested-in-raid-on-california-pot-farm-dhs-says
— Plane Hijacker, Child Predators, Murderers: ICE Nabs More Than 1,300 Illegals In Houston. Those arrested include a child sex predator who has been removed from the United States four different times.
https://www.dailywire.com/news/plane-hijacker-child-predators-murderers-ice-nabs-more-than-1300-illegals-in-houston

HOT AIR
— Left Wing Failures Breed More Violence Before MidTerms
https://hotair.com/headlines/2025/07/13/left-wing-failures-breed-more-violence-before-midterms-n3804749

MRC TV
— CNN Falsely Claims Illegals in Alligator Alcatraz Have ‘No Criminal Charges’
https://mrctv.org/videos/cnn-falsely-claims-illegals-alligator-alcatraz-have-no-criminal-charges

NEWSMAX
— Most Back Trump on Immigration
https://www.newsmax.com/us/poll-trump-immigration/2025/07/14/id/1218725/

FROM NATIONAL CENTER-LEFT SOURCES

NBC NEWS
— Trump’s team launches group to unseat GOP Rep. Thomas Massie. Have you been unseated? My critics/opponents had their operatives and their dupes unseat me as a) a member of the Illinois Republican Party State Convention Platform and Resolutions Committee in 2024, b) the Republican fundraiser for Wheaton Independence Day parades and fireworks in 2021, c) the TAPROOT Republicans of Illinois chairman in 2012, d) an Illinois Center Right Coalition officer in 2007, e) a GAO employee in 1997, and f) a postal employee in 1969. I should write about my critics/opponents.
https://www.aol.com/trumps-team-launches-group-unseat-235301803.html

NEWSWEEK
— Los Angeles To Give Cash Assistance To Immigrants Impacted By Trump Raids
https://www.newsweek.com/los-angeles-cash-assistance-immigation-ice-raids-2098642
— Democrat leaders promote protests against Trump on July 17
https://www.newsweek.com/map-list-cities-anti-trump-protests-july-17-2096597

NEW YORK TIMES
— Democrat leaders ever-increasingly promote more LGBTQ
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/14/health/south-africa-aids-hiv-trump-funding-cuts.html?searchResultPosition=1

WASHINGTON POST
— Supreme Court allows deep layoffs at Education Department. GAO works for Congress. Gingrich should have reformed GAO instead of gutting it. If he had reformed GAO, I might still be working for GAO. In any event, my Democrat GAO superiors would not have been able to a) force me to retire when I was 49 years old in 1997, b) always rank me in the bottom half of my coworkers for pay-for-performance, c) delay my promotions and never promote me beyond GS-13, d) keep me off audits of IRS except for 3 of the almost 18 years that I worked for GAO, 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.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2025/07/14/supreme-court-education-department-/
— Trump wants to dismantle the Education Department. What would that mean? Instead of reforming GAO, Gingrich gutted GAO. I should write about that.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2025/07/15/education-department-dismantled-trump-explained/

USA TODAY
— Reasons why you’re not getting promoted. Democrats run the federal government. My Democrat superiors delayed my promotions and never promoted me beyond GS-13 not only because I refused to become a Democrat, but because I ever-increasingly complained about their political affiliation discrimination, reverse discrimination, and age discrimination.
https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/2025/06/30/5-mistakes-preventing-promotion/84376177007/
— Should I take a buyout. My Democrat GAO superiors always wanted to get rid of me and my coworkers who shared my demographics. In 1993, when I was 45 years old, they “offered” those like me who had 25 or more years of federal service a $25,000 buyout if we retired early. They succeeded in forcing me to retire 4 years later just before their “offer” expired. I would not have been eligible for regular retirement for another 6 years. Beyond the tremendous negative financial impact of being forced to retire early, it gives your critics/opponents something very big to use against you. They will hint/imply/argue/shout that the real reason why you were forced to retire early is that you are a bad person. Further, the more qualifications that you have, the more that they will hint/imply/argue/shout that the real reason why you were forced to retire early is that you are a bad person. When my Democrat GAO superiors forced me to retire, I had three job-related master’s degrees, six job-related professional certifications, and a job-related professional license.
https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/2025/06/28/jobs-buyout-layoffs-recession-economy-tips/84383588007/
(FROM THE ARTICLE: You’ve been offered a buyout. Your employer wants to pay you to quit. It’s a big chunk of change. Should you accept? Companies offer buyouts to thin the ranks, spending money in the short term to save money in the long run. Employers often leverage buyouts to avoid layoffs. And that thought, alone, should give you pause. The Trump administration offered buyouts to the entire federal workforce this year, aiming to reduce it by as much as 10%. Roughly 75,000 workers accepted.)

WALL STREET JOURNAL
— Now Trump Says Forget Jeffrey Epstein. He urges MAGA to give up a conspiracy tale that he and his allies promoted.
https://www.wsj.com/opinion/now-trump-says-forget-jeffrey-epstein-9ca7d378
— Is Your Salary Too High for Today’s Job Market? My critics/opponents have always demonized me, denigrated me, and condemned me as being grossly overpaid. In today’s dollars, the federal government paid me $19.37/hour when I was 18, $55,850/year when I was 22, $68,315/year when I was 23, $82,655/year when I was 24, $99,069/year when I was 25, $112,280/year when I was 29, $117,807/year when I was 38, and $153.151/year when I was 49. In my defense, a) I earned a job-related bachelor’s degree when I was 21, b) I earned job-related master’s degrees when I was 27, 31, and 48, c) I earned job-related professional certifications when I was 30, 32, 41, 45, 47, and 48, and d) I earned a job-related professional license when I was 32.
https://www.wsj.com/podcasts/your-money-matters/is-your-salary-too-high-for-todays-job-market/84ae9a22-052e-43de-98ff-e859592134f8
— Democrat and RINO leaders illegally ever-increasingly illegally encourage citizens of foreign countries to bring their children illegally into America illegally and to illegally keep them in America illegally.
https://www.wsj.com/opinion/donald-trump-immigration-reform-gallup-polling-border-ice-deportations-c69218cf
— Family Reunions Become Harder to Keep. My family reunions were big during the 1950s and early 1960s on my father’s side in Crete and on my mother’s side in Grant Park.
https://www.wsj.com/lifestyle/relationships/what-it-takes-to-keep-those-family-reunions-picnics-and-funfetti-cupcakes-going-f083fb7f

WASHINGTON MONTHLY
— Democrat leaders ever-increasingly fight deportation of their illegals
https://washingtonmonthly.com/2025/07/14/america-is-now-a-police-state/

NEWSBREAK
— Trump Store in Huntley Illinois Closes After Eviction Battle
https://www.newsbreak.com/century-homes-america-322339187/4107185611986-trump-store-in-huntley-illinois-closes-after-eviction-battle

NATION
— Democrat leaders ever-increasingly a) paint Democrats as having been the Union Army in the Civil War and b) paint Republicans as having been the Confederate Army in the Civil War. Democrats have declared a Second Civil War against Republicans. Their illegals are their soldiers in their Democrat Army.
https://www.thenation.com/article/society/trump-confederacy-slavery-racism/

TAMMY DUCKWORTH
— Duckworth is a Democrat minority female veteran U.S. Senator. She demands answers regarding State Department layoffs. GAO works for Congress. If Duckworth had been a U.S. Senator during the 1980s and 1990s, would she have demanded answers regarding Gingrich’s gutting of GAO? My Democrat GAO superiors used Gingrich budget cuts to get rid of the agency’s Republican employees like me who were not minority, female, and/or veteran.
https://www.duckworth.senate.gov/news/press-releases/duckworth-booker-sfrc-colleagues-demand-answers-regarding-state-department-layoffs

FED SMITH
— What the One Big Beautiful Bill Act Means for Federal Employees. Federal employees dodged a bullet on proposed benefits cuts in the One Big Beautiful Bill, but there are other important tax changes to be aware of.
https://www.fedsmith.com/2025/07/10/what-the-one-big-beautiful-bill-act-means-for-federal-employees/