| | | | | |  | | By Shia Kapos | Presented by USA-IT | Happy Monday, Illinois. What a way to ring in summer, a tornado with lightning! h/t to photographer Barry Butler for this big bolt. AND WELCOME! Tina Sfondeles, who's been a political reporter for Business Insider in Washington, D.C., and before that the Sun-Times, joins POLITICO this week as co-author of West Wing Playbook with Alex Thompson. | 
Lightning strikes filled the Chicago skyline last night. | Photo by Barry Butler | |  | TOP TALKER | | Violence flooded Chicago streets over the weekend. At least five people were killed with gunfire and as many as 40 others injured. A man shot in the head. A couple ambushed on the street. A teenage boy hit in the leg. The brutality on the streets comes on the heels of Mayor Lori Lightfoot declaring racism a public health crisis last week and a new report by the Chicago Department of Public Health showing that Black residents have a life expectancy that's more than nine years shorter than non-Black Chicagoans in part because of gun violence. Lightfoot said she can do nothing less than declare such an emergency after the pandemic forced Black and Latino residents to bear the brunt of the layoffs and deaths. "It exposed Chicago's ugly underbelly — higher crime rates in neighborhoods of color triggered, in large part by disparate access to health care, healthy food options, jobs and economic opportunity," writes Sun-Times Fran Spielman. Chicago isn't the first to identify racism as a public health crisis. Michigan, Ohio and Wisconsin have already done so. The concerns dovetail with crime becoming more violent across the country. Lightfoot has said repeatedly that Chicago can't solve its violence problem on its own, and that the federal government will have to step in. "Our police department takes more guns off the street than Los Angeles or New York combined — year after year after year. We can't stop the flow of illegal guns into our city without the federal government's support," the mayor said Sunday on MSNBC. But it's hard to imagine what more the feds can do beyond changing Indiana's lax gun laws, for example. U.S. Attorney John Lausch has already ramped up the number of federal charges initiated by Chicago police arrests. It would take dozens more prosecutors and ATF agents to tackle the violence problem. And the city, county and state would need to actually work together (on top of the feds) in a way we've never seen them before to end the violence. Deep down, Lightfoot may know this and is now attempting to address the crisis in a different way — by focusing on the root of the problem. Along with declaring a public health crisis, she announced the city would funnel nearly $10 million in Covid-19 relief funding to help address and dismantle "historic inequities" in six Chicago neighborhoods. It's a similar tactic used by the Chicago Police Department to zero in on 15 police beats with the highest rates of violence. More police officers are being assigned to those neighborhoods, ideally to curb the brutality that engulfs those specific areas. "When you see violence raging in certain neighborhoods, it's where there is systemic racism, poverty and a lack of hope and desperation," Lightfoot said Sunday. "Too many of our young men do not believe that the future lies in education, in career. They think it's jail, early death, or minding somebody else's corner spot. We've got to disrupt those systems and replace them with positive, productive activities for our young men." RELATED — Why people misperceive crime trends — Chicago is not the murder capital, reports The New York Times — Maryland graduate student killed in Loop stabbing described as a brilliant criminology researcher, by Tribune's William Lee and Rosemary Sobol | | THE BUZZ | | Tribune columnists Dahleen Glanton, John Kass and Pulitzer Prize winner Mary Schmich, sports writer Shannon Ryan, and Chicago magazine editor and publisher Susanna Homan are the latest editorial staffers to depart the paper after taking a lucrative buyout offer in wake of new ownership. Columnists Heidi Stevens and Eric Zorn, and opinion writer Steve Chapman announced their exits last week. "I loved my time at the Tribune but it was time to go. And I still think about all the great journalists who are there, working hard under difficult circumstances," Kass told Playbook. The legendary columnist has already started an independent column, johnkassnews.com. Writing on a new platform, "is very much like moving into a new home," he says in his first column. "Where's the kitchen?" Kass adds that he's already "killing it" with "many thousands" of new subscribers. The buyouts at the Tribune were offered within days of hedge fund Alden Global Capital securing ownership of parent company Tribune Publishing. The new owners are working to reduce staff levels. The buyouts offer 12 weeks of severance plus a week's pay for every year of service for those who were at the Tribune four years or more. Glanton, Kass, Schmich, Stevens and Zorn have each been with the paper for decades. Staffers with three years or less in service were offered eight weeks' severance. Homan, who has been in her position for five years, is one of the highest-ranking employees to make a buyout exit. "I am so proud of the work that we've done together in the last five years and look forward to even greater things from my extraordinary colleagues," she told media reporter Robert Feder, who's recorded one exit after another in the past few days. Also departing is Georgia Garvey, the editor-in-chief of the Lake County News-Sun and the Pioneer Press newspapers. "I'm proud of everyone I work with. I am certain that they'll be fine without me because they're smart and resourceful," Garvey tweeted, echoing what those staying at the Tribune are saying. The Tribune still has a hefty bench of news reporters, after all. The paper isn't going to miss a step in its day to day report. But with the exit of so many columnists, the paper loses many of its big thinkers — whether you agree with them or not. They're the folks who dug deeper than the he-said-she-said of news stories and offered opinions on one side (Kass) or the other (Zorn) about Chicago, Illinois and the world. Have a tip, suggestion, birthday, anniversary, new job, or any other nugget for Playbook? Get in touch: skapos@politico.com | | | | A message from USA-IT: As a major shipping hub, Illinois is exploited by international cartels, who transport and distribute drugs across its borders, making life harder and more dangerous for Illinois residents. To fight back, law enforcement follows a multipronged strategy of hitting traffickers where it hurts: their wallets. That's why our partners are proud to bring their expertise in combating illegal trade to the fight against corruption and violence in Illinois. Learn more. | | |
| | WHERE'S LORI | | At Kennedy-King College at 10 a.m. for a City Colleges of Chicago announcement. | | WHERE'S J.B. | | No official public events. | | Where's Toni | | No official public events. | | CORONAVIRUS UPDATES | | — The Illinois Department of Public Health reported 65 deaths since last Monday and 928 new confirmed and probable cases of Covid-19. That's a total of 23,133 fatalities and 1,388,688 cases in Illinois. The preliminary seven-day statewide positivity for cases as a percent of total tests from June 11 through 17 is 0.6 percent. Chicago's positivity rate on Wednesday was at 0.7 percent. — America is ready to return to normal. Biden's CDC chief isn't so sure, by POLITICO's Erin Banco. | | FEELING '22 | | — FIRST IN PLAYBOOK: Cook County Clerk Karen Yarbrough will seek re-election in 2022. She's holding a kick-off fundraiser tonight on the rooftop of the Civic Opera Building. Yarbrough will cite her experience managing the 2020 presidential election during the Covid-19 pandemic as a reason to vote for her. The county clerk is the election authority for suburban Cook County. Yarbrough also took on new duties of the county Recorder of Deeds, a position that was folded into the clerk's office after a cost-saving measure was approved by referendum in 2016. Yarbrough had been considered as a possible candidate for secretary of state but said she decided against running for statewide office. — Hastings drops bid for secretary of state: Illinois state Sen. Michael Hastings suspended his campaign to lead the Secretary of State's Office. State law wouldn't allow him to run simultaneously for both the statewide seat and for his Senate seat, and Hastings ultimately chose to focus on the legislative job. "My heart and home is the 19th District, the community where I have spent most of my life. I was raised there, and it is where I am raising my family today. At this moment in time, it is where I belong and where I am needed most," he said in a statement. His exit from the race still leaves four Democratic candidates in the primary race to replace Secretary of State Jesse White: Chicago Ald. Pat Dowell, former state Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias, Chicago Ald. David Moore, and Chicago City Clerk Anna Valencia. — Speaking of SOS: Democrat Alexi Giannoulias released a new ad in his campaign for Secretary of State that features endorsements from Rep. Chuy García and members of the progressive 22nd Ward Independent Political Organization. | | | | DON'T MISS THE MILKEN INSTITUTE FUTURE OF HEALTH SUMMIT: POLITICO will feature a special edition of our Future Pulse newsletter at the 2021 Milken Institute Future of Health Summit. The newsletter takes readers inside one of the most influential gatherings of global health industry leaders and innovators who are turning lessons learned from the past year into a healthier, more resilient and more equitable future. Covid-19 threatened our health and well-being, while simultaneously leading to extraordinary coordination to improve pandemic preparedness, disease prevention, diversity in clinical trials, mental health resources, food access and more. SUBSCRIBE TODAY to receive exclusive coverage from June 22-23. | | | | |
| | IN THE SPOTLIGHT | | | 
Illinois Congressman Danny Davis holds up a pen that President Joe Biden used to sign the Juneteenth National Independence Day Act. He joined with Vice President Kamala Harris, Opal Lee, who's been advocating for the holiday for years, and other members of Congress. | Associated Press photo | — Rep. Danny Davis was front and center in Washington last week when President Joe Biden signed legislation establishing June 19, or Juneteenth, as a new federal holiday commemorating the end of slavery. The House voted 415-14 earlier in the week to send the bill to Biden after the Senate passed the bill unanimously. The Biden administration asked Davis to be on hand for the signing because he was among the first lawmakers, along with then-Sen. Barack Obama, to propose legislation recognizing the significance of Juneteenth. That first bill was proposed in 2005. — Evanston activist sees Juneteenth's recognition as a step toward reparations: "Robin Rue Simmons, a former Evanston alderman, is perhaps at the vanguard of one fight for racial justice. Rue Simmons, whose term ended in May, led Evanston's effort to implement reparations. So far, the north suburb has allocated $400,000 for certain Black residents who have experienced housing discrimination," by WBEZ's Odette Yousef. — Juneteenth Flag flies over Illinois state Capitol for the first time, via CBS/2 | | LEGISLATIVE UPDATE | | — Pritzker signs election package that moves 2022 primary to June, makes fixtures of curbside and mail-in voting: "In signing the elections bill, Pritzker painted the new law as a sharp contrast to efforts in other states to curtail voting rights," Tribune's Rick Pearson and Dan Petrella report. ... The bill also makes government titles gender neutral: "A provision at the end of the lengthy bill, however, will change words like 'alderman"'to 'alderperson,' while the word 'congressman' in an official capacity will be changed to 'congressperson,'" reports the Western Journal's Kipp Jones . ... More than 660 bills are heading to the governor, who signed 17 of them as of Friday, reports Capitol News' Jerry Nowicki. — They're only human: Illinois Senate President Don Harmon talked about the two big bills still up in the air in Springfield: the epic clean-energy bill that's still being worked out between environmentalists and labor, and the elected school board measure, which has passed both Houses but is on hold to be discussed with Chicago's mayor before being sent to the governor's desk. "We don't get everything right. Things change. This is a process. We're always willing to come back and revisit and revise," Harmon told WBBM's Craig Dellimore. — Welch addresses school board bill and the remap: House Speaker Emanuel "Chris" Welch said "work on remapping what will be Illinois 17 congressional districts — the state will have to drop a seat — should be done in mid-to-late October," reports Sun-Times' Lynn Sweet. — Lawmakers approve proposal to allow sex workers to expunge past felony prostitution convictions, by NPR's Derek Cantù | | THE STATEWIDES | | — FIRST IN PLAYBOOK: Illinois Supreme Court confirms ongoing support of remote court appearances, according to a letter obtained from Chief Justice Anne Burke and obtained by Playbook. — 'Do your job': Illinois sheriffs take aim at DOC over inmate transfer policy: "Illinois sheriffs say the Department of Corrections has forced them to house inmates already sentenced to state prisons for months on end and at their own expense for more than a year," by WGEM's Blake Sammann. — It's cicada season: Ready for bulging red eyes, screeching and a light dousing of sticky bug juice? by Tribune's Morgan Greene. — Isabelle Hanson crowned Miss Illinois 2021, reports the Southern's Les O'Dell | | CHICAGO | | — Eleventh-hour compromise reached on civilian police review over Lightfoot's objections, but mayoral ally refused to consider it: "The mayor was poised to suffer another bitter political defeat after a compromise was hammered out that would give a civilian oversight panel the final say in disputes over police policy," by Sun-Times' Fran Spielman. — Police Board votes to fire cop involved in controversial shooting of his friend: "After arguing for nearly a decade that Michael LaPorta shot himself in a botched suicide attempt, the city's Law Department now says Chicago police Officer Patrick Kelly pulled the trigger, and pushed for his firing. City officials have not offered a detailed explanation about why they changed their position or offered LaPorta an apology for their past arguments," by Tribune's Stacy St. Clair and Jeremy Gorner. — As Parkway Gardens struggles, owner raises stakes on downtown bet: "Owner Related Midwest put the South Side complex on the market, then pulled it off amid code violations and as it presses its case for a casino license in the South Loop," by Sun-Times' David Roeder. — Lightfoot dismisses Bears' bid for Arlington Heights location as a 'negotiation tactic': "The Bears are locked into a lease at Soldier field until 2033. In addition, this announcement ...comes in the midst of negotiations for improvements at Soldier Field," the mayor said in a statement on Twitter. "This is clearly a negotiating tactic that the Bears have used before." WTTW's Heather Cherone reports — Why Chicago's grid is a model of perfect urban order: "Out of 100 major world cities, Chicago 'exhibits the closest approximation of a single perfect grid,'" writes Edward McClelland in Chicago magazine. | | | |   | | |
| | COOK COUNTY AND COLLARS | | — 'Tremendous amount of damage': 1 critically hurt in Naperville after tornado: "At least one person was critically injured and four others were hurt in Naperville after a tornado Sunday damaged more than 130 homes in a subdivision on the city's far east side, fire officials said. Naperville, Woodridge and Darien sustained the worst damage, the National Weather Service reported," by Daily Herald's Katlyn Smith and Paul Valade. — Waukegan, Romeoville coal-fired power plants to shut down in 2022: "The decision by owner NRG follows months of debate among Illinois lawmakers about closing all coal plants by 2035 to reduce air pollution and fight climate change," by Sun-Times' Brett Chase. — Chicago billionaire identified as mystery buyer who paid $24M for 3.3 acres in Winnetka," reports Robert Goldsborough for the Tribune. | | DAY IN COURT | | — Former Worth Township Supervisor John O'Sullivan pleads guilty to bribery scheme: "The ex-state lawmaker also added his name to the lengthy list of individuals who have agreed to cooperate in the feds' ongoing public corruption investigations," by Sun-Times' Jon Seidel — Former federal prosecutor defends his own brother in murder case, but behavior works against him: "Anthony Jackson has long claimed self-defense, saying Mixon threatened him physically and verbally, and on the first day of his murder trial in 2015, his brother stepped in to help represent him. The entrance of attorney George Jackson III made it a case of brother defending brother — an unusual occurrence even at the Leighton Criminal Court Building, a courthouse known for high-stakes drama. Despite his brother's help, Anthony Jackson was convicted, and since then matters have only gotten stranger," by Tribune's Megan Crepeau. — For more than a year, city sought security improvements at Englewood home where 8 people were shot. Yet nothing was done: "Chicago's lawsuit seeking fencing, heavy-duty locks and security cameras stalled because the owner could not be reached," by Sun-Times' David Struett. | | THE NATIONAL TAKE | | — 'Tip of the spear': Texas governor leads revolt against Biden, by POLITICO's David Siders — Chaotic N.C. Senate primary tests Trump's sway over the GOP, by POLITICO's Burgess Everett, Melanie Zanona and Olivia Beavers — Betsy DeVos left Washington 5 months ago. Her legacy is alive and well, by POLITICO's Bianca Quilantan — The Natural-Gas Glut Has Evaporated, Driving Prices Higher, by the Wall Street Journal | | | | SUBSCRIBE TO WEST WING PLAYBOOK: Add West Wing Playbook to keep up with the power players, latest policy developments and intriguing whispers percolating inside the West Wing and across the highest levels of the Cabinet. For buzzy nuggets and details you won't find anywhere else, subscribe today. | | | | |
| | IN MEMORIAM | | — Auschwitz survivor, Illinois Holocaust Museum President Fritzie Fritzshall dies at 91: "Fritzshall survived by pretending to be older than her age and was moved to a subcamp of Auschwitz, where she worked as a slave laborer, she said in an interview for the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. In a video interview on the museum's website, she credited her initial survival to a man who warned her to pretend to be older than she was, and thus a stronger worker," by Tribune's Maggie Prosser. — David Smallwood, Chicago journalist, author, longtime N'Digo editor, dead at 66: "Smallwood co-authored and edited several books on Black icons and was editor of N'digo for more than 30 years. He died June 11 from complications of cancer and Covid-19," by Sun-Times' Maudlyne Ihejirika. — Therese 'T' Loftus, Misericordia's Candy Days maven, dead at 62: "She coordinated the thousands of people who hand out more than 1 million packages of Jelly Belly candies each year in exchange for donations to the Chicago charity," by Sun-Times' Maureen O'Donnell. — 'He died doing what he loved': Smokejumper from Chicago area mourned after suffering fatal injuries fighting forest fire in New Mexico, by Tribune's Robert McCoppin | | TRANSITIONS | | — Rajagopal "Raj" Echambadi has been named president of Illinois Institute of Technology. He's the university's 10th president, taking over the top administrative spot Aug. 16 from outgoing President Alan W. Cramb, who announced his retirement in December. Echambadi has been Dunton Family Dean at D'Amore-McKim School of Business at Northeastern University. — John Cullerton has been appointed to the Sentencing Advisory Policy Council. He's the former state Senate president. — Ashley Antoskiewicz will be manager of federal affairs at John Deere. She most recently was deputy chief of staff to Rep. Darin LaHood. — Brig. Gen. Rodney Boyd is the new commander of the Illinois Army National Guard. He was appointed by Gov. J.B. Pritzker. — Alfonso Cano has been named senior policy and education director for the Health Care Council of Illinois. Cano previously served as bureau chief for Long Term Care at the Illinois Department of Public Health and before that was a rules analyst for the General Assembly's Joint Committee on Administrative Rules. — Tyler Edwards has been named social media strategist for the voting rights PAC iVote. He most recently served as the digital content officer at the Cook County State's Attorney's Office. — Alaina Hampton recently joined the consulting firm Mission Control as a Strategic Partner. — Anna Krolikowska has been installed as president of the Illinois State Bar Association. A family law attorney based in Northbrook, Krolikowska has served as vice president—winning approval from all 102 counties. Krolikowska was sworn in by Illinois Supreme Court Justice Anne Burke. — James Mendez has been named account supervisor for Culloton + Bauer Luce, a Chicago-based public affairs firm. Mendez previously was budget analyst for Ald. Pat Dowell, who chairs the City Council's Committee on Budget and Government Operations. — Grace Pai has been named executive director of Asian Americans Advancing Justice—Chicago, a nonprofit advocacy group. The organization helped rally support for the Teaching Equitable Asian American Community History Act — TEAACH — that awaits the governor's signature. Pai previously was organizing director for Advancing Justice. — Cory Thames has been named chief engagement officer for the Business Leadership Council. He previously was deputy commissioner for Intergovernmental Affairs at Chicago's Aviation Department and before that was deputy director of community engagement at the Obama Foundation. | | EVENTS | | Tuesday at 11 a.m.: The Shriver Center holds a virtual gala webinar, "Building an Economy That Works for Everyone." The event will examine economic justice as it pertains to "guaranteed income, fair pay, and workplace protections for low-wage workers." Featured guest is Michael Tubbs, former mayor of Stockton, Calif., and founder and chair of Mayors for a Guaranteed Income. Register here. | | KUDOS | | The Publicity Club of Chicago handed out its Golden Trumpet Awards on Friday. Cramer-Krasselt won the Best of Show award for its 'Navigating Coronavirus with the Brand Name Corona' campaign. The club also gave a special tribute to longtime Chicago publicist Dori Wilson, who died in February. Other winners: Jasculca Terman Strategic Communications for its Lakeview Pantry Covid-19 Response campaign; L.C. Williams & Associates for its AASM — Student Sleep Health Week; and MWW won for the Bridging Remote Learning During Covid-19 campaign. PCC Board Member and Metropolitan Family Services' Bridget Hatch received PCC's Volunteer of the Year Award. | | TRIVIA | | THURSDAY's ANSWER: Was the question too hard or were you all just enjoying the long weekend? The answer: Pierre Menard was the Canadian-born person who became one of Illinois' first statewide constitutional officers. He was born near Montreal but grew up in Kaskaskia. Significant because Illinois for a time was divided between French-speaking and English-speaking citizens. Menard was a ticket-balancing candidate to help Illinois' first governor, Shadrach Bond, who spoke English. Menard County is named after him. TODAY's QUESTION: Who was the iconic musician who mastered his craft at Jane Addams Hull House? Email to skapos@politico.com | | | | A message from USA-IT: Illinois has made great strides fighting corruption. However, because of its position as a major hub for shipment throughout the Great Lakes and the Midwest, international cartels are both major transporters and distributors of drugs in the state. These groups exploit governments and citizens, manipulate financial systems, spur corruption, and cultivate instability and violence that threatens our communities.
Their profits from illegal trade enable corruption, and often go directly back into the sales and movement of drugs, apparel, counterfeit medicines, wildlife, weapons, and even people, making life harder and more dangerous for Illinois residents. To fight back, law enforcement follows a multipronged strategy of hitting traffickers where it hurts: their wallets.
That's why our partners are proud to bring their expertise in combating illegal trade to the fight against corruption and violence in Illinois. Learn more. | | |
| | HAPPY BIRTHDAY | | Acacia Consulting Group Partner Morgan Harris, Shinola Corporate Business Director Mike Faulman, public-policy pro Chris Kane, art gallery owner Monique Meloche, and PR pro Kathleen Sarpy. -30-
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