May 8 Morning Edition

ABC7
— Orland Park Mayor Keith Pekau calls for reopening village ahead of Gov. Pritzker’s stay-at-home-order timeline – Alexis McAdams
https://abc7chicago.com/business/orland-park-mayor-calls-for-reopening-village-ahead-of-governors-timeline/6162722/

NBC5
— Illinois Paid Over $2B in Unemployment Claims in First 4 Months of 2020 The IDES said it’s processed more than 1 million initial unemployment claims since March 1.
https://www.nbcchicago.com/news/local/illinois-paid-over-2b-in-unemployment-claims-in-first-4-months-of-2020/2268346/

CHICAGO SUN-TIMES
— Economy vs. epidemiology? Pritzker gears reopening to science and saving lives – but business leaders call plan ‘misguided’ The Illinois Department of Employment Security processed more claims during the first month of the pandemic than it did during all of last year — and that number nearly doubled in the second month of the crisis. – Mitchell Armentrout
https://chicago.suntimes.com/politics/2020/5/7/21251384/pritzker-reopening-illinois-unemployment-claim-region-chamber-commerce
— Hundreds of city workers take on new jobs to meet pandemic needs From librarians to Streets and Sanitation workers, their regular jobs are on hold or taking a backseat as the pandemic grips the city. – Mitch Dudek (DIERSEN: In 1971, while I was in training to be an IRS Revenue Officer, that was put on hold for a while when I was assigned to help enforce Nixon’s price controls which included freezes on wages, rents, and dividends.)
https://chicago.suntimes.com/city-hall/2020/5/7/21249727/chicago-redeploys-city-workers-meet-pandemic-needs-coronavirus-covid-19

CHICAGO TRIBUNE
— How does Gov. J.B. Pritzker — and how do local governments — collect taxes from businesses he’s shut down? – John Kass
https://www.chicagotribune.com/columns/john-kass/ct-coronavirus-small-businesses-taxes-kass-20200508-p2r27biwqzaxtair6ii7beiv3e-story.html
— Oak Brook village president blasts Gov. Pritzker’s reopening plan: ‘Our businesses have suffered beyond repair’ – CHUCK FIELDMAN
https://www.chicagotribune.com/suburbs/oak-brook/ct-dob-lalmalani-business-reaction-tl-0514-20200507-mzhf3z3ufjfd3czedte27wx4r4-story.html
— Illinois congressional delegation seeks extension of 2,000 National Guard troops to assist with pandemic through June – RICK PEARSON
https://www.chicagotribune.com/coronavirus/ct-illinois-national-guard-extension-20200507-jaqlfojdfzbpthutddqvgjt6uy-story.html
— Coronavirus in Illinois updates: Here’s what’s happening Friday with COVID-19 in the Chicago area
https://www.chicagotribune.com/coronavirus/ct-coronavirus-pandemic-chicago-illinois-news-20200508-hzzbgz52lnd2zl4iyt2t3i4ksm-story.html
— How to get back to normal? Mass testing – Steve Chapman (DIERSEN: Democrats run Illinois. What will the Democrats who run Illinois do with a) those who test positive and b) those who test negative?)
https://www.chicagotribune.com/columns/steve-chapman/ct-column-covid-trump-testing-vaccine-chapman-20200507-sym6a43zcneshkzsecendtxhxm-story.html

CRAIN’S CHICAGO BUSINESS
— Unemployment rate more than triples April’s rate of 14.7 percent is the highest since just after the Great Depression of the 1930s. – Bloomberg
https://www.chicagobusiness.com/employment/unemployment-rate-more-triples
— Ford to restart most U.S. factories—including Chicago—May 18 “We have reopened our facilities in China, successfully begun our phased restart in Europe and have been producing medical equipment in Michigan for more than six weeks and are using the lessons from all of that.” – MICHAEL MARTINEZ
https://www.chicagobusiness.com/manufacturing/ford-restart-most-us-factories-including-chicago-may-18

WBEZ
— U.S. Field Hospitals Stand Down, Most Without Treating Any COVID-19 Patients – Joel Rose
https://www.wbez.org/stories/us-field-hospitals-stand-down-most-without-treating-any-covid-19-patients/a5df4fff-611b-465f-83ec-10c5ff4e5f2a

PEORIA JOURNAL STAR
— Peoria businessman files lawsuit against Pritzker – Phil Luciano
https://www.pjstar.com/news/20200507/peoria-businessman-files-lawsuit-against-pritzker

SPRINGFIELD STATE JOURNAL REGISTER
— Economic fallout from no fair will be widespread
https://www.sj-r.com/news/20200507/economic-fallout-from-no-fair-will-be-widespread

JACKSONVILLE JOURNAL COURIER
— Another 74,000 Illinoisans land on unemployment line – Jerry Nowicki
https://www.myjournalcourier.com/news/article/Another-74-000-Illinoisans-land-on-unemployment-15256033.php

FOX ILLINOIS
— As Trump turns to economic recovery, partisan rift grows in perception of outbreak – Stephen Loiaconi
https://foxillinois.com/news/connect-to-congress/as-trump-turns-to-economic-recovery-partisan-rift-grows-in-perception-of-outbreak
— Face masks make a political statement in era of coronavirus (DIERSEN: One could expect that the more hatred of Trump that there is in a neighborhood, precinct, municipal district, municipality, township, county, state, and country, the more that you will be harassed if not threatened if you do not wear a mask. How much hatred of Trump is there in your neighborhood, precinct, municipal district, municipality, township, and county?)
https://foxillinois.com/news/nation-world/face-masks-make-a-political-statement-in-era-of-coronavirus-05-07-2020
— Governors disregarding White House guidelines on reopening – AP
https://foxillinois.com/news/nation-world/governors-disregarding-white-house-guidelines-on-reopening
— Anti-gun violence groups hold virtual rallies around Illinois FOID bill – Jakob Emerson
https://foxillinois.com/news/local/anti-gun-violence-groups-hold-virtual-rallies-around-illinois-foid-bill

MDJ ONLINE
— Leading statehouse Republican says Pritzker’s ‘major flaw’ is not addressing human toll from Illinois shutdown – Greg Bishop (DIERSEN: As the human toll grows, so will hatred of individuals, organizations, companies, governments, and countries that are Trump supporters, Protestant, conservative, patriotic, Republican, American, White, male, older, non-poor, gun owners, German American, draft avoiders, and those whose ancestors have been in America for a long time.)
https://www.mdjonline.com/neighbor_newspapers/extra/news/leading-statehouse-republican-says-pritzker-s-major-flaw-is-not-addressing-human-toll-from-illinois/video_c1477c22-ef01-57e6-889a-bdc37ddbb9f1.html

VANDALIA RADIO
— Illinois Governor Sees Budget Crisis From Coronavirus, Won’t Commit To Budget Cuts – Todd Stapleton
https://www.vandaliaradio.com/2020/05/08/illinois-governor-sees-budget-crisis-from-coronavirus-wont-commit-to-budget-cuts/

NEWS CHANNEL 20
— Rep. LaHood named to 15-member China Task Force – KHQA
https://newschannel20.com/news/coronavirus/rep-lahood-named-to-15-member-china-task-force
— Local businesses come together for meal handout (DIERSEN: How soon, because of the fight against coronavirus will everyone in the world be handing out welfare and/or collecting welfare?)
https://newschannel20.com/news/local/local-businesses-come-together-for-meal-handout

KHQA
— State leaders continue the fight to reopen Illinois faster than Pritzker proposes – Rachel Meyers
https://khqa.com/news/coronavirus/state-leaders-continue-the-discussion-to-reopen-illinois-faster-than-pritzker-proposes

WIREPOINTS
— Pritzker’s top-down reopen strategy will fail large parts of Illinois: He should expect push back – Ted Dabrowski and John Klingner
https://wirepoints.org/pritzkers-top-down-reopen-strategy-will-fail-large-parts-of-illinois-he-should-expect-push-back-wirepoints/

ILLINOIS POLICY INSTITUTE
— ILLINOIS’ ECONOMY SHRINKING BY MORE THAN $183M PER DAY AS STATE APPROACHES 1M NEW JOBLESS CLAIMS – Orphe Divounguy, Bryce Hill, Jon Josko
https://www.illinoispolicy.org/illinois-economy-shrinking-by-more-than-183m-per-day-as-state-approaches-1m-new-jobless-claims/

ILLINOIS REVIEW
— ACLJ SUBMITS FOIA DEMAND TO EXPOSE TRUTH BEHIND ILLINOIS DECISION TO KEEP ABORTION CLINICS OPEN DURING PANDEMIC
https://www.illinoisreview.com/illinoisreview/2020/05/aclj-submits-foia-demand-to-expose-truth-behind-illinois-decision-to-keep-abortion-clinics-open-duri.html
— SOCIAL JUSTICE ISN’T JUSTICE
https://www.illinoisreview.com/illinoisreview/2020/05/social-justice-isnt-justice.html
— ISOLATION AS DANGEROUS AS SMOKING 15 CIGARETTES A DAY, LOCKDOWN ADVISER WARNS
https://www.illinoisreview.com/illinoisreview/2020/05/isolation-as-dangerous-as-smoking-15-cigarettes-a-day-lockdown-adviser-warns.html

WASHINGTON EXAMINER
— ‘This is NUTS’: Ted Cruz slams city council resolution deeming ‘Chinese virus’ a hate speech term – Andrew Mark Miller
https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/this-is-nuts-ted-cruz-slams-city-council-resolution-deeming-chinese-virus-a-hate-speech-term
— The Human Rights Campaign sells its soul to endorse Joe Biden – Brad Polumbo
https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/the-human-rights-campaign-sells-its-soul-to-endorse-joe-biden

WASHINGTON FREE BEACON
— Obama’s China Ambassador Compares Trump’s Rhetoric Toward China to Hitler Max Baucus says U.S. will ‘pay a price’ for ‘China-bashing’ – Graham Piro
https://freebeacon.com/coronavirus/obamas-china-ambassador-compares-trumps-rhetoric-toward-china-to-hitler/

FREEDOM’S JOURNAL
— INDIVIDUAL RESPONSIBILITY VS. THE WELFARE STATE: A BIBLICAL PERSPECTIVE – Eric M. Wallace, PhD
https://freedomsjournalinstitute.org/uncategorized/individual-responsibility-vs-the-welfare-state-a-biblical-perspective/

THE HILL
— Biden faces hard lift in winning over hard left – JONATHAN EASLEY AND AMIE PARNES (DIERSEN: How soon, if not already, to defeat Trump, will Biden promise to use the federal government to get rid of the following once and for all: individuals, organizations, companies, governments, and countries that are Trump supporters, Protestant, conservative, patriotic, Republican, American, White, male, older, heterosexual, non-poor, gun owners, German American, draft avoiders, and those whose ancestors have been in America for a long time?)
https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/496656-biden-faces-hard-lift-in-winning-over-hard-left
— Ted Cruz: I don’t see why Texas should have to bail out states for irresponsibility – J. EDWARD MORENO (DIERSEN: One could argue that Illinois has not acted irresponsibly but that just those in Illinois who have voted for Democrats or RINOs have acted irresponsibly.)
https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/496343-ted-cruz-i-dont-see-why-texas-should-have-to-bail-out-states-for

CNN
— Record 20.5 million American jobs lost in April. Unemployment rate soars to 14.7% – Anneken Tappe
https://www.cnn.com/2020/05/08/economy/april-jobs-report-2020-coronavirus/index.html

NEW YORK TIMES
— U.S. employment hit 14.7% in April, with 20.5 million unemployed.
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/08/business/stock-market-coronavirus-jobs-report.html
— OUTSTANDING: The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday threw out a lower court ruling that had invalidated a decades-old federal law defended by President Donald Trump’s administration that makes it a felony to encourage illegal immigration. – Reuters (DIERSEN: I should write a book about individuals, organizations, companies, governments, and countries that encourage illegal immigration. I would focus on those in Illinois, DuPage County, Milton Township, and Wheaton who have lots of religious, government, political, and/or financial clout. I would focus on those who focus on destroying those like me who support America’s immigration laws.)
https://www.nytimes.com/reuters/2020/05/07/world/asia/07reuters-usa-court-immigration-speech.html
— HARDCOPY ARTICLE TITLE: News Outlets Suffer as Advertisers Shun Articles About Coronavirus – Tiffany Hsu and Marc Tracy
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/07/business/media/advertising-coronavirus-news.html
— DIERSEN HEADLINE: Ever-increasingly, Trump-haters use coronavirus to defeat Trump.
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/07/opinion/coronavirus-republicans-jobs.html
— Knock, Knock, Who’s There? No Political Canvassers, for the First Time Maybe Ever Candidates and political parties are struggling to plan for a fall campaign without some of the most basic building blocks of politics. – Shane Goldmacher (DIERSEN: What will candidates want precinct committeemen to do to help elect them?)
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/07/us/politics/2020-elections.html
— FRONT PAGE TOP OF FOLD: For Workers, No Sign of ‘What Normal Is Going to Look Like’ Initial steps to reopen businesses have yet to offset continuing job losses, with a “secondary wave” of layoffs hitting white-collar industries. – Patricia Cohen and Tiffany Hsu (DIERSEN: During the 1980s and 1990s, the Democrats who ran GAO used Republican-led budget cuts to get rid of their employees who were Republican, White, male, and/or non-veteran who they had not promoted to GS-13 (currently $101,176) by age 25, GS-14 (currently $119,559) by age 30, GS-15 (currently $140,634) by age 35, and Senior Executive Service (currently $170,800) by age 40.)
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/07/business/economy/coronavirus-unemployment-claims.html

WALL STREET JOURNAL
— Businesses Struggle to Lure Workers Away From Unemployment Some workers are making more from unemployment than at their old jobs, complicating reopenings – Kris Maher (DIERSEN: My Civil Service Retirement System pension is only 41% of what my GAO salary was in 1997 in today’s dollars.)
https://www.wsj.com/articles/businesses-struggle-to-lure-workers-away-from-unemployment-11588930202
— Postal Service Is in Financial Peril, Government Watchdog Report Says GAO says Congress should determine level of service the nation requires as coronavirus pandemic hits USPS’s business and determine whether agency should be financially self-sustaining – Paul Ziobro
https://www.wsj.com/articles/postal-service-is-in-financial-peril-government-watchdog-report-says-11588865412
— Coronavirus Puts Congress’s Doctor on Front Lines Senate and House leaders rely on Dr. Brian Monahan’s medical advice but reach different decisions on returning to Capitol – Kristina Peterson and Natalie Andrews
https://www.wsj.com/articles/coronavirus-puts-congresss-doctor-on-front-lines-11588852459

NEWSWEEK
— BANKRUPTCY FOR STATES? IT’S A BETTER IDEA THAN YOU THINK. – JOSHUA SHARF
https://www.newsweek.com/bankruptcy-states-its-better-idea-you-think-opinion-1502682

GOVERNMENT EXECUTIVE
— When Can You Afford to Retire? Questions to ask yourself if you’re considering early retirement. – Tammy Flanagan (DIERSEN: I should write a book about early retirement.)
https://www.govexec.com/pay-benefits/2020/05/when-can-you-afford-retire/165229/

(FROM THE ARTICLE: Would you like to retire at your minimum retirement age (55-57, depending on your year of birth) under the Federal Employees Retirement System? That decision will depend not just on your age, but whether or not you can afford to leave the working world behind. The three parts of FERS retirement—an annuity (including a supplement for some of those who retire early), Social Security benefits, and personal investments in the Thrift Savings Plan—were designed to work together to provide the income needed in retirement. How early you personally can comfortably retire requires asking yourself the following questions: How much income will you need to cover your expenses? Will you have enough income to last the rest of your life? Have you considered the tax implications of your financial decisions? Have you accounted for future inflation? Have you factored in unforeseen future events, such as the potential need for long term care and the volatility of your investments? Do you plan to continue to work after you retire from federal service? Can you afford to delay claiming Social Security retirement? Do you understand how much net income you’ll get from your FERS retirement benefit after reductions and withholdings? If you are married, have you considered your income requirements while you and your spouse are both living, but also when one of you may become the survivor? Do you have others who depend on you for financial support?)

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.