January 28 Evening Edition

ABC7
— IRAN TO BAN US CITIZENS IN RESPONSE TO DONALD TRUMP’S IMMIGRATION ORDER – AP
http://abc7chicago.com/politics/iran-to-ban-us-citizens-in-response-to-trumps-immigration-order/1725747/

 

NBC5
— DIERSEN HEADLINE: Anti-Trumps say “Activists Rally at Chicago’s O’Hare Airport Against Trump’s Order on Refugees.”
http://www.nbcchicago.com/news/local/chicago-ohare-airport-refugees-detained-trump-executive-order-412060113.html
— ‘Refugees Welcome’ Protest Erupts at JFK Airport  The demonstrators held homemade signs that read “No ban, no wall” and “Refugees welcome” in front of Terminal 4’s international arrivals area Saturday afternoon – Michael George  (DIERSEN: How soon, if not already, will anti-Trumps hold up signs that say members of the following groups are NOT WELCOME: Trump supporters, Protestants, conservatives, Republicans, Americans, Whites, males, older people, non-poor people, gun owners, German Americans, draft avoiders, and/or those whose ancestors have been in America for a long time?)
http://www.nbcchicago.com/news/national-international/Following-Detainment-Refugees-Welcome-Protest-Erupts-at-JFK-Airport-412046833.html

 

CBS2
— President Trump’s Executive Order Detains Many At O’Hare Airport – Mike Krauser
http://chicago.cbslocal.com/2017/01/28/president-trumps-executive-order-detains-many-at-ohare-airport/

 

FOX NEWS CHICAGO
— Trump signs order giving Joint Chiefs 30 days to come up with plan to defeat ISIS – AP
http://www.fox32chicago.com/news/national/232356058-story
— FedEx stands up for driver seen stopping flag-burners
http://www.fox32chicago.com/politics/232330283-story

 

CHICAGO TRIBUNE
— DIERSEN HEADLINE: Anti-Trumps glorify and praise “Chicago advocates” who “condemn Trump’s order on refugees, migrants.”
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/breaking/ct-chicago-reaction-trump-immigration-suspension-met-20170127-story.html
— Trump, Putin have first official phone conversation amid European anxiety about future relations – Christi Parsons and Tracy Wilkinson
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/ct-trump-putin-phone-call-20170128-story.html
— Lake County Circuit Court loses ‘key people’ under early retirement incentive – Jim Newton  (DIERSEN: Because my Democrat GAO superiors succeeded in forcing me to take their early retirement “offer” in 1997 when I was 49 years old, my Civil Service Retirement System pension was dramatically reduced, is dramatically reduced, and will be dramatically reduced for the rest of my life. That dramatic reduction is increasingly requiring my wife and I to spend our non-retirement savings to pay our bills.)
http://www.chicagotribune.com/suburbs/lake-county-news-sun/crime/ct-lns-circuit-court-retirements-st-0128-20170127-story.html
— 18 people held at O’Hare after Trump order, including Park Ridge man – Grace Wong and Stacy St. Clair
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/breaking/ct-several-reportedly-detained-at-o-hare-international-airport-20170128-story.html
— DIERSEN HEADLINE: Anti-Trumps say “Trump order aimed at refugees from Muslim countries sparks confusion, outrage.”
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/ct-trump-migrants-grounded-20170128-story.html
— DIERSEN HEADLINE: Anti-Trumps say “Countries where Trump does business are not hit by new travel restrictions.”
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/ct-trump-immigration-conflicts-20170128-story.html
— DIERSEN HEADLINE: An anti-Trumps says “Trump blocks Muslim refugees, America loses a part of itself.” How soon, if not already, will anti-Trumps hold up signs that say members of the following groups are NOT WANTED: Trump supporters, Protestants, conservatives, Republicans, Americans, Whites, males, older people, non-poor people, gun owners, German Americans, draft avoiders, and/or those whose ancestors have been in America for a long time?
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/opinion/huppke/ct-trump-muslim-refugees-huppke-20170128-column.html
— Trump sets 5-year and lifetime lobbying ban for officials
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/politics/ct-trump-lobbying-ban-20170128-story.html
— Report says youth unemployment chronic, concentrated and deeply rooted – Alexia Elejalde-Ruiz  (DIERSEN: Were you unemployed when you were young?  I was not.  I did yard work, delivered newspapers, washed dishes, cleaned golf shoes, chipped slag, pumped gasoline, delivered mail, worked on an automobile assembly line, and worked as a security guard.)
http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/ct-youth-unemployment-data-0129-biz-20170127-story.html
— DIERSEN HEADLINE: Anti-Trumps say “Trump tasks son-in-law Kushner, a diplomatic novice, with managing Mexico dispute.”  GAO audits IRS.  My Democrat GAO superiors tasked IRS novices with auditing IRS while at the same time wasting my knowledge of IRS that I had gained by working for IRS for almost 9 years, the last 5 1/2 years of which at the GS-12 Step 1-5 levels, currently $79,563-$90,173.)
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/politics/ct-trump-kushner-diplomacy-20170128-story.html
— Naperville shooting victim identified as Lewis University college prof – Karen Sorensen
http://www.chicagotribune.com/suburbs/naperville-sun/ct-nvs-naperville-homicide-shooting-st-0129-20170128-story.html

 

CHICAGO SUN-TIMES
— People traveling from Iran detained at O’Hare after Trump’s order – Sam Charles
http://chicago.suntimes.com/news/trump-signs-order-barring-all-refugees-for-four-months/
— Legal residents with green cards warned not to leave U.S. – Lynn Sweet
http://chicago.suntimes.com/news/legal-residents-with-green-cards-warned-not-to-leave-u-s/
— Congresswoman, lawyers working to free 13 detainees at O’Hare – Sam Charles
http://chicago.suntimes.com/news/trump-signs-order-barring-all-refugees-for-four-months/

 

DAILY HERALD
— DIERSEN HEADLINE: Anti-Trumps say “Anger erupts over Trump’s order banning refugees from U.S.”
http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20170128/news/301289926/
— As U.S. bans refugees, alarms remain over homegrown extremists – AP
http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20170128/news/301289905/
— Man shot outside Naperville school while waiting for son, age 4 – Jake Griffin and Chacour Koop
http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20170128/news/170128808/

 

CRAIN’S CHICAGO BUSINESS
— What Trump, and Rauner, could do for Chicago – GREG HINZ  (DIERSEN: What do you want Trump and Rauner to do for your municipality?  Who should pay for that?)
https://www.chicagobusiness.com/article/20170128/ISSUE05/170129843/what-donald-trump-and-bruce-rauner-could-do-for-chicago

 

WLS
— Rauner Will Fight For Workers Pay – Nick Gale  (DIERSEN: I worked for GAO 1980-1997.  The Democrats who ran GAO back then fought for their employees, but only for their employees who were Democrat, minority, female, younger, and/or veteran.)
http://www.wlsam.com/2017/01/28/rauner-will-fight-for-workers-pay/

 

FOX ILLINOIS
— VERY SAD: Urbana’s Mayor Calls Trump A “Bully” With New Order On Sanctuary Cities – Em Nguyen
http://foxillinois.com/news/local/urbanas-mayor-calls-trump-a-bully-with-new-order-on-sanctuary-cities
— VERY SAD: Evanston Mayor Says Suburb Still Has ‘Sanctuary City’ Status – AP
http://foxillinois.com/news/local/evanston-mayor-says-suburb-still-has-sanctuary-city-status-01-27-2017

 

WSIL TV
— DIERSEN HEADLINE: Anti-Trumps say “Growing fallout from Trump’s new immigration crackdown.”
http://www.wsiltv.com/story/34368551/growing-fallout-from-trumps-new-immigration-crackdown
— Trump’s immigration curbs no surprise, those affected say – AP
http://www.wsiltv.com/story/34367570/trumps-immigration-curbs-no-surprise-those-affected-say

 

SPRINGFIELD STATE JOURNAL REGISTER
— AFSCME looks out for its members – Charlene Henderson, Springfield  (DIERSEN: What organizations are/were you a member of?  Do/did those organizations look out for you?  I should write a book about a) how TAPROOT Republicans of Illinois looked out for its members 2005-2012, b) how the Wheaton Chamber of Commerce Government Affairs Committee looked out for its members 2003-2011, c) how the Milton Township Republican Central Committee has looked out for its members since 1999, d) how the Illinois Center Right Coalition looked out for its members 2003-2007, and e) how the American Association of Political Consultants Midwest Chapter looked out for its members 2001-2004.)
http://www.sj-r.com/opinion/20170127/letter-afscme-looks-out-for-its-members

 

BLOOMINGTON PANTAGRAPH
— State of the Standoff: Money keeps flowing into pensions – Dan Petrella
http://www.pantagraph.com/news/local/state-of-the-standoff-money-keeps-flowing-into-pensions/article_7f993d34-1207-5dd0-8bc2-7bc7a84c05d9.html

 

QUAD CITY TIMES
— Springfield standoff: No budget equals layoffs, pain – Barb Ickes
http://qctimes.com/news/local/government-and-politics/springfield-standoff-no-budget-equals-layoffs-pain/article_11846c6a-2cad-5879-85e3-0ddd28483bb9.html
— Illinois impasse: ‘There’s no comparison that we can point to’ – Dan Petrella
http://qctimes.com/news/local/government-and-politics/illinois-impasse-there-s-no-comparison-that-we-can-point/article_234e6e9a-3091-5b02-9d0e-4d4e77a55381.html

 

PEORIA JOURNAL STAR
— More waiting on the ‘grand bargain’ – Doug Finke
http://www.pjstar.com/news/20170128/statehouse-insider-more-waiting-on-grand-bargain

 

JOURNAL STANDARD
— Donald Trump inauguration – alternative facts or alternative opinions? – Chuck Sweeny
http://www.journalstandard.com/news/20170128/chuck-sweeny-donald-trump-inauguration—alternative-facts-or-alternative-opinions

 

CHAMPAIGN/URBANA NEWS GAZETTE
— AG’s office says proposed pay freeze wouldn’t affect UI workers – Tom Kacich
http://www.news-gazette.com/news/local/2017-01-28/ags-office-says-proposed-pay-freeze-wouldnt-affect-ui-workers.html

 

SOUTHERN
— State of the Standoff: Will it ever end? Budget impasse reaches unparalleled territory – DAN PETRELLA
http://thesouthern.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/state-of-the-standoff-will-it-ever-end-budget-impasse/article_08e9dcb9-3c1b-5aea-a50f-08c56f45a2b2.html

 

CASINO NEWS DAILY
— DISGUSTING, TRAGIC: Illinois Considers Casino Industry Expansion to End Budget Impasse
http://www.casinonewsdaily.com/2017/01/28/illinois-considers-casino-industry-expansion-end-budget-impasse/

 

WEST COOK NEWS
— Dropping home values, high property taxes push Illinois toward financial cliff, analyst says
http://westcooknews.com/stories/511077455-dropping-home-values-high-property-taxes-push-illinois-toward-financial-cliff-analyst-says

 

ILLINOIS POLICY INSTITUTE
— INSTEAD OF TAX HIKES, END PENSION PICKUPS  Lawmakers are proposing a range of new tax hikes as a “compromise” solution to the state’s budget woes. But simple reforms to Illinois’ teacher pension system are a better way to fix the state’s finances without hurting taxpayers. – Joe Kaiser
https://www.illinoispolicy.org/instead-of-tax-hikes-end-pension-pickups/?linkId=33881001
— INSTEAD OF TAX HIKES, REFORM HIGHER EDUCATION TO PRIORITIZE STUDENTS OVER ADMINISTRATORS  Illinois spends more money on retirement costs than on university operations – and tuition keeps rising to prop up this overspending. Instead of hiking taxes to maintain current spending habits in higher education, politicians should shift priorities from propping up six-figure administrators to keeping tuition affordable for students. – Joe Kaiser
https://www.illinoispolicy.org/instead-of-tax-hikes-reform-higher-education-to-prioritize-students-over-administrators/

 

ILLINOIS REVIEW
— TREASONOUS: CHICAGO OFFICIALS DECLARE THEY PLAN TO DEFY TEMPORARY FEDERAL IMMIGRATION BAN
http://illinoisreview.typepad.com/illinoisreview/2017/01/chicago-officials-declare-they-plan-to-defy-temporary-federal-immigration-ban.html
— IDEAS OF SMALLER GOVERNMENT, LOWER TAXES “UNREALISTIC,” REPUBLICAN SENATE LEADER CHRISTINE RADOGNO SAYS  (DIERSEN: In Illinois, if you get elected/appointed as a Republican, you obligate yourself to defend and to advance the Illinois Republican Party platform.)
http://illinoisreview.typepad.com/illinoisreview/2017/01/ideas-of-smaller-government-lower-taxes-unrealistic-il-gop-senate-leader-says.html

 

FOX NEWS
— Why Trump’s probe of voter fraud is long overdue – John Fund and Hans A. von Spakovsky
http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2017/01/25/john-fund-and-hans-von-spakovsky-why-trumps-probe-voter-fraud-is-long-overdue.html

 

NEWSMAX
— Trump Slams New York Times, Washington Post on Twitter – Loren Gutentag
http://www.newsmax.com/Politics/Trump-Twitter-Media/2017/01/28/id/770853/

 

AMERICAN THINKER
— Illegal Aliens Really Do Vote – a Lot – William Campenni
http://www.americanthinker.com/articles/2017/01/illegal_aliens_really_do_vote_a_lot.html

 

DAILY CALLER
— JUNE 16, 2016 FLASHBACK: The Past Six Presidents Have All Used The Executive Power To Block Certain Classes Of Immigrants – ALEX PFEIFFER
http://dailycaller.com/2016/06/16/the-past-six-presidents-have-all-used-executive-power-to-block-certain-classes-of-immigrants/

 

THE HILL
— DIERSEN HEADLINE: Anti-Trumps say “Schumer calls for Trump admin to ‘rescind’ refugee order.”
http://thehill.com/homenews/administration/316711-schumer-calls-for-trump-admin-to-rescind-refugee-order
— DIERSEN HEADLINE: Anti-Trumps say “Trump order on refugees creates chaos.”
http://thehill.com/homenews/administration/316699-trump-order-on-refugees-creates-chaos-confusion

 

CNN
— DIERSEN HEADLINE: Anti-Trumps say “Trump’s immigration ban sends shockwaves.”
http://www.cnn.com/2017/01/28/politics/donald-trump-executive-order-immigration-reaction/index.html

 

REUTERS
— DIERSEN HEADLINE: Anti-Americans decry “U.S. travel curbs.”
http://in.reuters.com/article/usa-trump-refugees-mideast-idINKBN15C0MR

 

NBC NEWS
— Officials Say Visas Were Being Revoked Prior to Trump’s Executive Order – SAFIA SAMEE ALI
http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/officials-say-visas-were-being-revoked-prior-trump-s-executive-n713546

 

NEW YORK TIMES
— DIERSEN HEADLINE: Anti-Trumps say “Donald Trump’s Muslim Ban Is Cowardly and Dangerous.”  Islam is more like political party or a country without borders than a religion.
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/28/opinion/donald-trumps-muslim-ban-is-cowardly-and-dangerous.html
— DIERSEN HEADLINE: Anti-Trumps glorify and praise citizens of foreign countries, but despise, if not hate, those who are Trump supporters, Protestant, conservative, Republican, American, White, male, older, non-poor, gun owners, German American, draft avoiders, and/or those whose ancestors have been in America for a long time.
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/28/us/refugees-syria-trump.html
— DIERSEN HEADLINE: Anti-Trumps say “‘Up Is Down’: Trump’s Unreality Show Echoes His Business Past.”
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/28/us/politics/donald-trump-truth.html

 

NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
— DIERSEN HEADLINE: Anti-Trumps say “We must stand with refugees and green card holders from the Middle East who’ve fallen victim to Trump’s ban.”
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/stand-victims-trump-refugee-ban-article-1.2958290
— DIERSEN HEADLINE: Anti-Trumps say “President Trump falls far short of his campaign promises despite a historically busy first week in the White House.”
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/trump-falls-short-campaign-promises-busy-week-article-1.2958256

 

WALL STREET JORNAL
— DIERSEN HEADLINE: Anti-Trumps say “Silicon Valley Leaders Target Donald Trump’s Travel Restrictions.  Executives worry order will affect their companies’ employees, say ban violates personal and company principals.”
http://www.wsj.com/articles/silicon-valley-leaders-target-donald-trumps-travel-restrictions-1485649332

 

WASHINGTON POST
— In unprecedented move, pension plan cuts benefits promised to retirees – Jonnelle Marte  (DIERSEN: If you are in line to get a pension or if you are getting a pension, who wants your pension to be cut, if not eliminated? I should write a book about those who want my $50,856 Civil Service Retirement System pension to be cut, if not eliminated. I could focus on those who are full of hatred against those who are in line to get a pension and against those like me who are getting a pension.  I could focus on the aforesaid haters who regularly read GOPUSA ILLINOIS emails.)
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/get-there/wp/2017/01/27/in-unprecedented-move-pension-plan-approves-benefit-cuts-for-retired-iron-workers/
(FROM THE ARTICLE: A pension fund in Cleveland became the first plan to approve benefit cuts for current retirees — even though it is still years away from running out of cash. The move, some critics say, could open the door for other troubled pension plans to follow suit. The financially strapped Iron Workers Local 17 Pension fund proposed a plan for extending its life span by reducing benefits for workers and retirees. Now that the plan has received final approval, roughly half of the 2,000 participants will see their pension benefits shrink on Feb. 1. Benefits will be cut by 20 percent on average, but some retirees are expecting their monthly payments to be slashed by as much as 60 percent. The unprecedented move comes after a 2014 law made it possible for troubled pension plans to reduce benefits to retirees if it would improve the financial health of the fund. The legislation dealt a major blow to federal protections that for nearly 40 years guarded the financial promises made to retirees. The announcement stunned some former ironworkers, many of whom said they sacrificed time with family and other opportunities so that they could earn a secure income stream in retirement. Joe Finley, 63, said he regularly worked 12 hours a day and took weekend shifts so that he could earn more credits for his pension. Now, his monthly check is set to be reduced to $1,900, from the roughly $3,500 he was previously receiving. The lost income is about equal to his monthly mortgage payment, causing Finley to worry that he may have to put his three-bedroom home on the market. “This is the devastation that I knew was coming, but I just couldn’t wrap my mind around it,” Finley said after learning the news. “You play by all the rules … and then they pull the rug out from under you.” The fund’s proposal was first green-lighted by the Treasury Department late last year before being put up for a vote by members this month. The impact will vary based on the individual’s work status and age. About half of the participants are not going to see any cuts at all because of their age or a disability. Others will see minor reductions. But more than 300 participants will see their checks cut by between 30 and 60 percent. Some people who took advantage of an early retirement option are among those facing the steepest cuts. Some critics say the divide in outcomes may have ultimately pinned workers, who could have felt they were choosing between a smaller pension and no pension at all, against retirees who feel they have few options for making up the lost pay. More than half of the 1,938 people eligible to vote did not cast a vote. About 16 percent, or 300, voted against the cuts. Another 600 members voted in favor of the changes. “I’ve been sort of sitting here staring off in the distance,” said Larry Burruel, 68, who is expecting his pension check to be cut in half. “We’re going to have to make a lot of cuts,” said Burruel, who is worried he and his wife will struggle to afford their medical bills with the smaller paycheck. The leaders of the ironworkers fund said making cuts now could prevent the need for more dramatic reductions in the future. Without changes, the ironworkers fund was on pace to run out of cash by 2024. At that point, the plan would have had to rely on the federal insurance program meant to protect multiemployer plans. But that program is also facing steep shortfalls and is on track to run out of money by 2025. “The suspension plan, while reducing their pensions now, is a better alternative than letting the pension fund become insolvent,” the trustees of the fund said in a statement. The ironworkers make up only a small portion of the roughly 1 million workers and retirees in pension plans that are on track to exhaust funds within the next two decades, according to the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation, which insures private pensions. The Central States Pension Fund, one of the largest multiemployer pension plans in the country, became the first fund to apply to cut benefits under the law with a proposal that would have affected nearly 300,000 current and retired truckers. But Treasury rejected that application in the spring, saying the changes would not be enough to save the financially struggling fund. Some pension advocates said they worry that the approval of the cuts in Cleveland could open the door for other financially struggling pension plans to follow suit. “Retirees … performed dangerous work counting on the promise of their pensions,” said Karen Ferguson, director of the Pension Rights Center. “It is simply wrong that after their years of backbreaking work, they have been left out in the cold.” Ferguson and other consumer advocates argue that rejecting the cuts would have given lawmakers more time to come up with another plan for shoring up pension funds. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), who is critical of the cuts, called on Congress to find a long-term fix. “Too many retirees across Ohio face uncertainty over the benefits they’ve earned,” he said. “We need to work on a bipartisan solution to protect Ohio workers from the mistakes made by those managing their funds.”)

 

THE BEAST
— Gregg Phillips, Donald Trump’s Voter Fraud Guru, Blasted as a ‘Revolving Door Hustler’  Making outlandish claims about illegal votes is only the latest in a long line of controversies Gregg Phillips has found himself in. – GIDEON RESNICK, BEN COLLINS, and BRANDY ZADROZNY
http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2017/01/28/gregg-phillips-donald-trump-s-voter-fraud-guru-blasted-as-a-revolving-door-hustler.html

 

FED SMITH
— Practical Advice for Incoming Political Appointees from Federal Insiders – Bob Gilson  (DIERSEN: From what I see, virtually all federal employees are Democrats who not only want Trump to fail, they will focus on making him fail. Democrats put defending and advancing the Democrat Party platform before all else.)
http://www.fedsmith.com/2017/01/28/practical-advice-for-incoming-political-appointees-from-federal-insiders/

 

INDEPENDENT
— The truth about your inheritance  Younger generations increasingly expect a windfall will get them out of money trouble. But new figures could make for alarming reading. – Kate Hughes  (DIERSEN: My 86-year-old aunt is spending $230 a day for assisted living.)
http://www.independent.co.uk/money/the-truth-about-your-inheritance-a7545696.html

Author: David Diersen

The opinions that I express in GOPUSA ILLINOIS emails are based on experience that I have gained doing many things since 1948. I base my opinions on what I learned a) working for the federal government for almost 30 years -- Post Office 1966-1969, IRS 1971-1980, and GAO 1980-1997, serving on the Executive Committee of the Association of Government Accountants Chicago Chapter 1983-1996, and being a union member while I worked for the Post Office and IRS; b) earning an MBA from Loyola in 1976, a masters degree in accounting from DePaul in 1980, and a masters degree in financial markets and trading from IIT in 1997; c) passing the CPA examination on my first attempt in 1979 and passing the Certified Internal Auditor examination on my first attempt in 1981; c) serving as a Republican Precinct Committeeman since 1999, the GOPUSA Illinois Editor since 2000, the TAPROOT Republicans of Illinois Chairman 2005-2012, a member of the 2008 Illinois Republican Party (IRP) Platform and Resolutions Committee, a Wheaton Chamber of Commerce Government Affairs Committee member 2003-2011, the Milton Township Republican Central Committee webmaster 2008-2010 and 2000-2004, an Illinois Center Right Coalition Steering Committee member 2003-2007, and an American Association of Political Consultants Midwest Chapter board member 2001-2004; d) attending the 2000, 2004, 2008, 2012, and 2016 IRP State Conventions as a delegate; e) being the subject of a nasty 4-page article in the February 1978 issue of Money Magazine; f) pursing litigation including Diersen v. GAO and Diersen v. Chicago Car Exchange; g) being married since 1978; h) living in Crete 1948-1972, in University Park 1972-1976, in Chicago 1976-1978, and in DuPage County, Milton Township, and Wheaton since 1978; and i) being baptized, raised, and confirmed as a Missouri Synod Lutheran.