ABC7
— Trump calls McConnell ‘political hack’ after GOP leader blames ex-president for Capitol riot – AP
https://abc7chicago.com/trump-statement-on-mcconnell-impeachment-trial-us-capitol-riot-republicans/10347507/
— AS THE DEMOCRAT PARTY’S STRANGLEHOLD ON ILLINOIS, ON COOK COUNTY, AND ON CHICAGO TIGHTENS: IL FOID card, concealed carry license delays leave residents on edge as carjacking cases surge – Samantha Chatman
https://abc7chicago.com/foid-card-delays-leave-some-on-edge-as-carjacking-cases-surge/10345400/
CBS2
— DIERSEN HEADLINE: Hate-filled Trump-hating Trump-haters promote Kinzinger.
https://chicago.cbslocal.com/2021/02/16/rep-adam-kinzinger-shunned-family-president-trump/
WGN TV
— ‘It’s just not right’: Chicago area seniors deal with digital divide when making vaccine appointments – Tonya Francisco
https://wgntv.com/news/coronavirus/its-just-not-right-chicago-area-seniors-deal-with-digital-divide-when-making-vaccine-appointments/
CHICAGO SUN-TIMES
— Kinzinger’s relatives write second letter slamming him for Trump impeachment vote. The relatives said Kinzinger was “misled” and “brainwashed” and “manipulated” by Democrats and the “fake news media” in the Jan. 19 letter, obtained by the Chicago Sun-Times. – Lynn Sweet
https://chicago.suntimes.com/columnists/2021/2/16/22286690/adam-kinzinger-relatives-second-letter-slamming-him-trump-impeachment-vote-country-first
CHICAGO TRIBUNE
— DIERSEN HEADLINE: To push pot on an individual, municipality, county, state, or country is to destroy that individual, municipality, county, state, or country.
https://www.chicagotribune.com/marijuana/illinois/ct-biz-verano-weed-public-trading-chicago-20210217-6x4iyrgv4zduxbeetsprwt4n3m-story.html
— Robert Brandon McNeily, 32, of the 300 block of East Liberty Drive, Wheaton, was charged Feb. 10 with driving under the influence with a blood alcohol concentration over .08 and illegal lane usage near Lake Cook Road and Weiland Road. McNeily is scheduled to appear in court March 17.
https://www.chicagotribune.com/suburbs/buffalo-grove/ct-bgc-blotter-tl-0218-20210216-dbifmpjufzdfforpeybzpq7xwu-story.html
DAILY HERALD
— FRONT PAGE: In split vote, Lisle village board urges Pritzker to veto police reform bill – Scott C. Morgan
https://www.dailyherald.com/news/20210216/in-split-vote-lisle-village-board-urges-pritzker-to-veto-police-reform-bill
— If Greene is the standard, what about Democratic ‘kingmaker’ Sharpton? – Larry Elder (DIERSEN: I should write a book about kingmakers in Wheaton, Milton Township, DuPage County, and Illinois since 2000 and the kings they made. I would focus on those who they installed as leaders of Wheaton, Wheaton Chamber of Commerce, Milton Township, DuPage County, and Illinois since 2000.)
https://www.dailyherald.com/discuss/20210217/if-greene-is-the-standard-what-about-democratic-kingmaker-sharpton
ALTON DAILY NEWS
— Illinois GOP Calls for Hearings Before Cuts – Kevin Bessler
http://www.altondailynews.com/news/details.cfm?clientid=17&id=319235#.YC0MzGhKiM8
KANKAKEE DAILY JOURNAL
— DIERSEN HEADLINE: Hate-filled Trump-haters promote hate-filled Trump-haters.
https://www.daily-journal.com/opinion/voice-of-the-people-kinzinger-correct-to-condemn-trump/article_d83017a4-6fcf-11eb-86b8-93d5b5a23409.html
SUBURBAN LIFE
— DuPage County reports 76 COVID-19 cases Tuesday, 3 deaths, 3.76% of population fully vaccinated – Joshua Welge
https://www.shawlocal.com/my-suburban-life/coronavirus/2021/02/17/dupage-county-reports-76-covid-19-cases-tuesday-3-deaths-376-of-population-fully-vaccinated/
STATELINE
— In second letter, Kinzinger’s family says congressman ‘brainwashed’ by ‘fake news media’
https://www.mystateline.com/news/politics/in-second-letter-kinzingers-family-says-congressman-brainwashed-by-fake-news-media/
WREX
— Illinois Senators address carjacking, gun violence concerns across the state – Ali Rasper
https://wrex.com/2021/02/17/illinois-senators-address-carjacking-gun-violence-concerns-across-the-state/
BLOCK CLUB CHICAGO
— Fred Hampton’s Childhood Home To Become Community Center To Preserve Black Panther’s Legacy — And Continue Party’s Work. “Judas and the Black Messiah” brought new attention to the family’s plight to save the Maywood home, Hampton Jr. said. He also shared his thoughts on the film with Block Club. – Pascal Sabino
https://blockclubchicago.org/2021/02/16/fred-hamptons-childhood-home-to-become-community-center-to-preserve-black-panthers-legacy-and-continue-partys-work/
CHICAGO READER
— DIERSEN HEADLINE: A hate-filled Trump-hating Trump-hater promotes hatred against Trump and against Trump’s supporters.
https://m.chicagoreader.com/chicago/trump-impeachment-fair-maps/Content?oid=86499609
CHICAGO NOW
— Likely Gov Candidate Bailey ready to run on cutting property taxes, spending & pension benefits – Jeff Berkowitz
http://www.chicagonow.com/public-affairs-with-jeff-berkowitz/2021/02/likely-gov-candidate-bailey-airs-tonight-in-chicago-cable-web/
CENTER SQUARE ILLINOIS
— Amid persistent backlogs, some want to tighten up Illinois’ FOID card while others want it repealed – Greg Bishop
https://www.thecentersquare.com/illinois/amid-persistent-backlogs-some-want-to-tighten-up-illinois-foid-card-while-others-want-it/article_c3bd73ba-7093-11eb-aa75-8fee2f9f97a2.html
WIREPOINTS
— Memo To Congress Re Pending Aid To States: America Cannot Bail itself Out – Mark Glennon
https://wirepoints.org/memo-to-congress-re-pending-aid-to-states-america-cannot-bail-itself-out-wirepoints/
MCHENRY COUNTY BLOG
— IL-14: Lauren Underwood’s Farm Team PAC Endorsements for April Election
http://mchenrycountyblog.com/2021/02/16/farmteampac021621/
ILLINOIS POLICY INSTITUTE
— EXPECTED $7.5 BILLION IN FEDERAL AID WON’T FIX ILLINOIS BUDGET CRISIS WITHOUT STRUCTURAL REFORMS – Adam Schuster
https://www.illinoispolicy.org/expected-7-5-billion-in-federal-aid-wont-fix-illinois-budget-crisis-without-structural-reforms/
ILLINOIS REVIEW
— AMERICA ISN’T MAKE-BELIEVE
https://www.illinoisreview.com/illinoisreview/2021/02/america-isnt-make-believe.html
WASHINGTON TIMES
— Top 10 recent examples of cancel culture – Kelly Sadler (DIERSEN: I should write a book about those who have worked the hardest to cancel others. They focus on canceling those like me a) who they cannot manipulate/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, and/or e) who refuse to give them money. I would focus on those who have lots of religious, government, political, and/or financial clout in Wheaton’s West District, in Wheaton, in Milton Township, in DuPage County’s 4th District, in DuPage County, and in Illinois. I would focus on those who blame me and my GOPUSA ILLINOIS newsletters for their problems, for your problems, for my problems, and for everyone’s problems. I would focus on those who have been candidates on ballots in my precinct.)
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2021/feb/16/top-10-recent-examples-cancel-culture/
(FROM THE ARTICLE: We’re in a sad place as a society when somebody’s firing and/or cancellation is celebrated more than their life’s work. And yet, here we are. Below is a list of the top 10 cancellations, all that have occurred within the last year. Many on this list are notable names, people who will find other work and/or have the position and power to stand up to the woke crowd. It’s the names not represented who are the true victims — like those who have had their college acceptances rejected because of a social media post they made in high school — who were canceled before they ever could get started. They are not famous, and their names are not known. Not surprisingly, cancel culture cuts one way. If you say something too conservative and mildly offensive, the woke hall monitors on social media will find you. And if you’re famous, all the better, as Hollywood and corporate America seems to have embraced this new form of blacklisting:)
— Central Illinois village of Washburn disbands police department – AP
https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2021/feb/16/central-illinois-village-disbands-police-departmen/
WASHINGTON EXAMINER
— DIERSEN HEADLINE: A hate-filled Trump-hating Trump-hater says “The wave of party-sponsored censures greeting Republicans who cross former President Donald Trump reveals a GOP interested in pushing out heretics whose lone political sin is disloyalty to the vanquished party leader.” Trump is a platform Republican. RINOs push out platform Republicans.
https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/campaigns/local-gop-officials-closing-the-tent-to-trump-apostates
WASHINGTON FREE BEACON
— The Post-Trump GOP Florida’s DeSantis offers one possibility for the party’s future – Editorial
https://freebeacon.com/latest-news/the-post-trump-gop/
FOX NEWS
— Senate GOP reelection arm targets ‘vulnerable’ Senate Dems on reopening schools. Republicans hit Democrats over the influence of their teacher union allies on school closings – Paul Steinhauser
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/senate-gop-re-election-arm-targets-vulnerable-senate-dems-on-reopening-schools
(FROM THE ARTICLE: The other Democrats being targeted are Sens. Tammy Duckworth of Illinois and Michael Bennet of Colorado.)
DAILY CALLER
— Poll: 75% Of Republicans Want Trump To Play Prominent Role In GOP – OLIVIA INGRASSIA
https://dailycaller.com/2021/02/16/quinnipiac-poll-republicans-donald-trump/
— If Conservatives Do Not Defend The Family, Who Will? – HELEN ANDREWS (DIERSEN: To promote LGBTQ is to destroy traditional marriage and the traditional family. I should write a book about those who have done the most to destroy traditional marriage and the traditional family in Wheaton, in Milton Township, in DuPage County, and Illinois. I would focus on those who have lots of religious, government, political, and/or financial clout.)
https://dailycaller.com/2021/02/16/helen-andrews-conservatives-must-defend-family/
COLLEGE FIX
— John Marshall Law School claims exam question that offended students is not protected by academic freedom – GREG PIPER
https://www.thecollegefix.com/law-school-claims-exam-question-that-offended-students-is-not-protected-by-academic-freedom/
LEGAL INSURRECTION
— “Mitch is a dour, sullen, and unsmiling political hack”: Trump rails against Mitch McConnell following second impeachment attempt. No kind words for The Republican Party either. – Kemberlee Kaye
https://legalinsurrection.com/2021/02/mitch-is-a-dour-sullen-and-unsmiling-political-hack-trump-rails-against-mitch-mcconnell-following-second-impeachment-attempt/
EPOCH TIMES
— Former President Donald Trump’s Full Statement on Mitch McConnell
https://www.theepochtimes.com/read-former-president-donald-trumps-full-statement-on-mitch-mcconnell_3699437.html
HILL REPORTER
— Disowned By Family And Party, Rep. Kinzinger Still Works to Purge Trump From GOP – TIMOTHY EVANS (DIERSEN: Who is helping Kinzinger purge a) the 2,446,891 in Illinois who voted for Trump, b) the 193,611 in DuPage County who voted for Trump, c) the 20,080 in Milton Township who voted for Trump, and d) the 157 in my precinct who voted for Trump?)
https://hillreporter.com/disowned-by-family-and-party-rep-kinzinger-still-works-to-purge-trump-from-gop-93088
POLITICO
— The Birthplace of the Republican Party Buckles After Trump Nearly Blew Up the GOP. As many wonder how a party split by Trump can survive, one county outpost shows how time heals some wounds — or at least papers them over. – DAVID SIDERS
https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2021/02/17/trump-blew-up-gop-469155
— Reparations bill tests Biden and Harris on racial justice. The House proposal has been introduced in every Congress for more than three decades and would establish a commission of experts to study direct payments to African Americans. – MAYA KING
https://www.politico.com/news/2021/02/17/slavery-reparations-bill-469165
NEW YORK TIMES
— Trump Era in Atlantic City Ends With 3,000 Sticks of Dynamite The implosion of Trump Plaza Hotel and Casino, the last vestige of the former president’s once-dominant brand in Atlantic City, N.J., took place Wednesday morning. – Tracey Tully
https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/17/nyregion/atlantic-city-trump-plaza-implosion.html
— America’s Brutal Racial History Is Written All Over Our Genes. Our country has struggled to reckon with the horrors of the past. Could DNA tests help? – Libby Copeland (DIERSEN: I should write a book about my critics/opponents, their operatives, and their dupes who have stressed the strongest that I am 100% German national origin and that my ancestors immigrated during the 1840s and 1850s from what is now Germany. In my defense, I stress that according to http://dna.ancestry.com , my ancestry is 33% Europe West, 28% Scandinavia, 24% Great Britain, 11% Ireland, 2% Europe East, 1% Finland/Northwest Russia, and 1% Italy/Greece.)
https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/16/opinion/23andme-ancestry-race.html
NEW YORK POST
— NYC public school asks parents to ‘reflect’ on their ‘whiteness’ – Selim Algar and Kate Sheehy (DIERSEN: Ever-increasingly, Whites are demonized, denigrated, and condemned by individuals, organizations, companies, governments, and countries that are anti-law enforcement, anti-Trump, anti-conservative, anti-patriotic, anti-Republican, anti-American, anti-White, anti-male, anti-older people, anti-heterosexual, anti-traditional marriage/family, anti-non-poor people, anti-gun owners, anti-Christian, anti-Protestant, anti-Italian American, anti-German American, and/or anti-those whose ancestors have been in America for a long time as being White supremacists, Nazis, KKK members, haters, racists, sexists, bigots, and even worse things who should be gotten rid of once and for all.)
https://nypost.com/2021/02/16/nyc-public-school-asks-parents-to-reflect-on-their-whiteness/
USA TODAY
— ‘Massive failure’: Why are millions in Texas in the dark amid rolling blackouts, winter weather? Power outages in Texas amid extreme cold winter weather led to rolling blackouts and millions without electricity. Here’s why it happened. – Ryan W. Miller
https://www.usatoday.com/in-depth/news/nation/2021/02/16/texas-weather-power-outage-rolling-blackouts-leave-millions-dark/6764764002/
— Health officials say the coronavirus will likely become endemic in the next several years. What does that mean? – Adrianna Rodriguez
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/health/2021/02/17/covid-19-likely-become-endemic-experts-say-heres-what-means/4487953001/
— The complex history of Alexander Twilight, nation’s first African American to earn a bachelor’s degree. Though Twilight is lauded today as an African American scholar, preacher and educator, for much of his life he was marked as white on census records. – Marina Affo (DIERSEN: In 1970, I was the first of my ancestors to earn a bachelor’s degree.)
https://www.usatoday.com/in-depth/news/2021/02/08/complex-history-alexander-twilight-middleburys-first-black-graduate/4094045001/
ANCHORAGE DAILY NEWS
— Local Alaska Republicans censure Sen. Lisa Murkowski, citing impeachment vote and other issues – James Brooks
https://www.adn.com/politics/2021/02/17/local-alaska-republicans-censure-alaska-sen-lisa-murkowski-citing-impeachment-vote-and-other-issues/
MIAMI HERALD
— DIERSEN HEADLINE: A hate-filled Trump-hating Trump-hater promotes hatred against Trump and against Trump’s supporters.
https://www.pressherald.com/2021/02/17/leonard-pitts-rebel-republicans-who-rebuke-trump-need-new-saner-party/
MERCED SUN STAR
— California Republican takes on ‘cancel culture,’ proposes new discrimination protections – KIM BOJÓRQUEZ (DIERSEN: I should write a book about those who have worked the hardest to cancel others. They focus on canceling those like me a) who they cannot manipulate/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, and/or e) who refuse to give them money. I would focus on those who have lots of religious, government, political, and/or financial clout in Wheaton’s West District, in Wheaton, in Milton Township, in DuPage County’s 4th District, in DuPage County, and in Illinois. I would focus on those who blame me and my GOPUSA ILLINOIS newsletters for their problems, for your problems, for my problems, and for everyone’s problems. I would focus on those who have been candidates on ballots in my precinct.)
https://www.mercedsunstar.com/news/california/article249286800.html
(FROM THE ARTICLE: A California Republican lawmaker introduced two bills on Tuesday that aim to ban discrimination over a person’s political views, characterizing the package as an effort to fight ‘cancel culture.’ “Cancel culture and the efforts to silence differing opinions and voices should be a growing concern for all of us,” said Sen. Melissa Melendez, R-Lake Elsinore. “A climate of intolerance has been established and has stifled healthy and normal debate. Anyone who values their own freedom of speech should be concerned.” Senate Bill 238, also known as the Diversity of Thought Act, seeks to add political affiliation as a protected class under the Fair Employment and Housing Act. That law currently bars employment and housing discrimination based on someone’s race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, sexual orientation, familial status, marital status, disability, nationality and source of income. The other bill, Senate Bill 249, would amend California’s education code to prohibit discrimination, harassment intimidation and bullying in schools based on an individual’s political affiliation. Cancel culture, or ‘canceling,’ is the act of ostracizing a public figure or private citizen online or in public for behavior considered questionable or controversial. The terms have joined the cultural lexicon in recent years. The terms are commonly used in conservative media in the context of the entertainment industry, social media or mainstream news media, with right-leaning activists alleging bias against their views. For instance, former President Donald Trump’s supporters claimed he was a victim of “cancel culture” when Twitter and Facebook stripped him of his social media platforms when the companies concluded his campaign to retain power after losing the 2020 election risked inciting violence. Mike Madrid, a California-based Republican political strategist, said he’s not surprised that a Republican is seeking to make political affiliation a protected class. “It’s really symbolic of the Republican Party embracing the politics of victimization and grievance,” he said, adding that both Republicans and Democrats participate in cancel culture. He said free speech, even if it’s vile, should be protected, but “you can’t whine and cry about not suffering the consequences when you’re saying horrible things about people.” Well-known figures who have been ‘canceled’ as of late include former “The Mandalorian” actress Gina Carano, who was fired by television executives after she compared the experience of Republicans in today’s political climate to the plight of Jews during the Nazi Germany era on social media, according to reports. “It is unfathomable to me that corporations and members of the public would ruin a person’s career, business and family because of their political ideology,” Melendez continued. “A free society shouldn’t allow thoughts and ideas to be censored. Free speech covers all speech, not just that with which you agree.” Hector Barajas, communications director for the Senate Republican Caucus, said Melendez’s bill addresses the issue of blacklisting individuals by providing them protections against discrimination. “For those that like to talk about tolerance and diversity, they should also be tolerant of other people’s diverse opinions,” he said in a statement. “Tolerance should be a two-way street because the other road leads to a dead end.”)
WALL STREET JOURNAL
— Trump’s Statement Criticizes McConnell, Calling Him a ‘Political Hack’ ‘If Republican Senators are going to stay with him, they will not win again,’ a lengthy statement from the former president said. – Alex Leary and Lindsay Wise
https://www.wsj.com/articles/trump-criticizes-mcconnell-in-lengthy-statement-calling-him-a-political-hack-11613513959/
— The Political Making of a Texas Power Outage. How bad energy policy led to rolling blackouts in the freezing Lone Star State. – Editorial
https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-political-making-of-a-texas-power-outage-11613518653
— Covid-19 Dims Job Prospects, So Young People Sign Up for the Military – Andrew Jeong (DIERSEN: In 1966, when I was 18 years old, I was 1-A for the draft notwithstanding the fact that my eyesight could not be corrected to 20/20, that I had partial red/green color blindness, and that I could not run because I had Osgood-Schlatter disease (SEE: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Osgood%E2%80%93Schlatter_disease ).)
https://www.wsj.com/livecoverage/covid-2021-02-16/card/nnIwtVDMvTeMvRX6NnK8
— The Minimum Wage’s Racially Discriminatory Roots If the filibuster is a ‘Jim Crow relic,’ so is a policy designed to curtail the abundance of black labor. – Jason L. Rile (DIERSEN: Have you ever worked for the minimum wage? I worked for the minimum wage washing dishes in the basement of the S.S. Kresges in Chicago Heights 1964-1966 part-time during my junior and senior years at Crete-Monee High School and full-time during the summer in between. With the money that I earned doing that, I bought a new 1966 Pontiac Tempest Sprint in May of 1966. My understanding is that I was the first and only White male to hold that job. All the others before me and after me were minorities and/or females.)
https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-minimum-wages-racially-discriminatory-roots-11613517678
BLOOMBERG
— Freeze Could Keep Texans in the Dark for Days: Energy Update
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-02-16/texas-grid-official-expects-power-back-tonight-energy-update
BUSINESS INSIDER
— CPAC is taking Trump’s side in the battle for the soul of the GOP
https://www.businessinsider.com/cpac-2021-speakers-trump-pence-orlando-republican-conservative-2021-2
FORD AUTHORITY
— Study Finds That EV Owners Drive Half The Miles Of Everyone Else – Brett Foote
https://fordauthority.com/2021/02/study-finds-that-ev-owners-drive-half-the-miles-of-everyone-else/
NEWSWEEK
— Record Number of GOP Women in Congress ‘Didn’t Come to Compromise’ – STEVE FRIESS
https://www.newsweek.com/2021/02/19/record-number-gop-women-congress-didnt-come-compromise-1569025.html
