Get the latest news from around Illinois.
Crain’s Chicago Business: New group opposing graduated income tax puts Madigan in the middle
The face is that of Illinois House Speaker Mike Madigan, whose visage—literally—appears on stationery of the newly formed Vote No on Blank Check Committee and likely will dominate millions of dollars in coming TV ads from the group over the next year and a half.
Chicago Tribune: The feds once seized her cellphone, a line of people want to replace her and now Cook County Circuit Court Clerk Dorothy Brown says she won’t seek reelection
It’s been nearly four years since federal agents arrived at Dorothy Brown’s home to seize her cellphone, about five since a prospective employee handed over a $15,000 purported loan for her goat meat business, and longer still since the controversial circuit court clerk stopped accepting cash gifts and campaign contributions from her workers.
Brown has not been charged with any wrongdoing stemming from the federal probe but, according to court records and sources, the case is still the subject of an active grand jury investigation.
Chicago Tribune: State seeks to disbar ex-Gov. Rod Blagojevich from practicing law more than 8 years after conviction
Convicted former Gov. Rod Blagojevich, who has never really been considered a giant in the legal profession, used to joke that he’d spent more time frolicking on the beach at his law school in Malibu, Calif., than he did cracking books.
When he did buckle down and read, it was often history books, not case law, he said.
Chicago Tribune: A consultant disses Lightfoot’s casino sites. Now what?
So a consultant has branded five casino sites floated by Mayor Lori Lightfoot, all on the South and West Sides, as out-of-the-way losers.
Which raises the question: If the casino must be downtown, where should it go?
Chicago Sun-Times: Ald. Leslie Hairston accused of lying about nature sanctuary as part of ‘marketing campaign’ to jump-start golf course merger
Ald. Leslie Hairston (5th) was accused Wednesday of making false claims about the condition of a cherished nature sanctuary as part of a “marketing campaign” aimed at jump-starting a stalled plan to merge the Jackson Park and South Shore golf courses.
The merger has stirred controversy because the design by a firm owned by golf legend Tiger Woods would require closing Marquette Drive, building a pair of new underpasses, displacing tennis courts and relocating the South Shore Nature Sanctuary to make way for a new 12th hole that would be the “money shot” for a televised tournament.
Rockford Register-Star: Report: Winnebago County Board Chairman Frank Haney harassed administrator
Winnebago County Board Chairman Frank Haney violated the county’s discrimination and harassment policy when he said on several occasions that Administrator Carla Paschal “bats her eyes to get what she wants” from board members.
That’s the determination made by Chuck Hervas, an Itasca lawyer hired by the state’s attorney’s office to probe a workplace harassment complaint filed by Paschal against Haney in February.