| | | | |  | | By Shia Kapos | Happy Wednesday, Illinois. AI did not contribute to this report.
|  | TOP TALKER | | WAR ZONE: The battle between Mayor Brandon Johnson and Chicago Public Schools CEO Pedro Martinez escalated Tuesday, with some community leaders taking sides. In an op-ed in the Tribune, Martinez explained why he’s not resigning, as Johnson had demanded. “Doing so would risk creating a leadership vacuum and instability” that has a “domino effect" that can be felt in the classroom, the CPS CEO wrote. He’s not closing schools, either: Martinez called out a “misinformation campaign” claiming school closures were in the works. They are not, he said, and he proposed a moratorium on school closures until 2027 to put an end to the rumor. The very public fight over CPS leadership prompted a group of civic and elected leaders to urge the Chicago School Board to support Martinez. They weren’t subtle: “We stand in firm opposition to Mayor Brandon Johnson's request for CEO Pedro Martinez's resignation,” according to their letter obtained by Playbook. “We also strongly call upon the School Board to continue its support [Martinez] and to stand its ground against the unprecedented demands of the Chicago Teachers Union to fire him.” The full letter is here. Big names signed it, including former CPS CEOs Arne Duncan and Janice Jackson, as well as former Deputy Gov. for Education Jesse Ruiz (who also was an interim CPS CEO), Illinois Comptroller Susana Mendoza and Chicago City Clerk Anna Valencia. Also listed: 22 aldermen, including Ald. Pat Dowell (3rd), who chairs the City Council’s Finance Committee. The crux of the battle: The mayor wants CPS to take out a $300 million short-term loan to cover a $175 million pension payment and the cost of a new teachers contract. Martinez has rejected the idea, saying a short-term loan could damage the district’s financial health. The union’s view: Chicago Teachers Union President Stacy Davis Gates says there’s a revenue issue. “Pedro Martinez has to do two things. He has to get in line with his Board of Education, with his boss, the mayor, and with the workers who make the district go, and he needs to create a vision and a plan for how we win the revenue and the funding to offer students what they deserve,” she said on WTTW. In the school board’s court: According to a statement released Tuesday, "There are no plans to take action on the CEO’s contract at this time, nor are there any action items regarding securing a loan to support the Fiscal Year 2025 budget approved in July,” via Chalkbeat’s Reema Amin. (The statement was initially mislabeled as being a joint CPS and school board statement, but was corrected later as being from CPS.) RELATED Pushing out Martinez carries huge risks for Mayor Johnson, by the Sun-Times’ Fran Spielman Meanwhile in New York: NYC Schools Chancellor David Banks to step down amid federal probe, by POLITICO’s Madina Touré
| | THE BUZZ | | | | 
Gov. JB Pritzker with his wife MK and son Don and daughter Teddi after taking the oath of office from Mary Jane Theis in 2023. | Charles Rex Arbogast/AP | PRITZKER Q&A: Gov. JB Pritzker opened up about the vetting process for vice president during an appearance with Molly Jong-Fast on her podcast, Fast Politics. You can listen here. “The hardest part was it involves your family,” said Pritzker, who also described “hours and hours” of interviews during the veep vetting process. Poking around: “You’re going to your spouse and your children — in my case they’re young adult children in college — and saying ‘Hey, can you hand me the keys to your social media,’” Pritzker said. “You can imagine the reaction that you get, even if you have nothing in there that would be problematic. You can imagine my son and daughter saying, ‘Well, that’s a real invasion of my privacy. I’m not the one being vetted.’” Ultimately, though, his children were “absolutely cooperative and willing and cheered me on,” the governor said. The hand-off: The governor also referred to his children when talking about how President Joe Biden came to tap Vice President Kamala Harris to run for president. They noticed his age, Pritzker said. “They are 19 and 21, and they’re Democrats. And they would say every time the news was on, ‘I know we have to beat Donald Trump, but Joe Biden is just too old,’” Pritzker said, adding that he would defend Biden only to have his children say, “It’s hard to get excited.” That changed, Pritzker said, when Harris got on the ticket. If you are Janice Jackson, Playbook would like to hear from you! Email: skapos@politico.com
| | WHERE'S JB | | At The Terminal on Kostner Avenue at 11:30 a.m. to announce new quantum business investments.
| | WHERE's BRANDON | | At Midway Airport at 12:30 p.m. for the Club MDW ribbon-cutting.
| | Where's Toni | | No official public events. Have a tip, suggestion, birthday, new job or (heaven forbid) a complaint? Email: skapos@politico.com
| | CAMPAIGN TRAIL | | — CART BEFORE THE HORSE: Congressman Danny Davis is already out with an email to constituents, announcing they can sign up for tickets to the presidential inauguration Jan. 20 — though he doesn’t guarantee that you’ll get one. — Thursday: Former Sen. Mark Kirk and Illinois Republican Senate Leader John Curran will headline a fundraiser for Tom Schlenhardt, who’s running against Democratic Sen. Mark Walker in the 27th State Senate District. Details here — Chicago School board candidates are featured on the Sun-Times’ politics page (scroll down).
| | THE STATEWIDES | | — Illinois Supreme Court rulings address FOID seizures, hospital room privacy: “Justices unanimously overturn decision that would have voided part of FOID law,” by Capitol News’ Peter Hancock and Hannah Meisel. — Southern Illinois lawmakers call for change at prisons after exposure incidents: “They urge the Illinois Department of Corrections to temporarily suspend mail processing services within correctional facilities,” by KFVS’ Marsha Heller — Springfield-area’s Wenonah Bish, turning 112 years old, is likely state's oldest resident, by the State Journal-Register’s Tom Ackerman
| | CHICAGO | | — Vacant armory can't be used as police station because of air traffic safety rules, Mayor Johnson says: “The state wants to transfer a former National Guard armory in the Clearing neighborhood to the city for $1 to house a new police district. But it’s too close to Midway Airport to comply with federal air safety rules, city lawyers said,” by the Sun-Times’ Fran Spielman. In response: Rep. Angie Guerrero-Cuellar and Sen. Mike Porfirio have written a letter to the governor, asking the state to hold off on transferring the deed to the flight facility until “the mayor understands the real purpose of the law and moves forward accordingly.” Read their letter here — Inside a public housing advocate’s push to oust the CHA CEO: “Longtime resident, advocate and board member Francine Washington went from disruptive activist to influential insider at the Chicago Housing Authority. She says she’s still fighting for people without a voice,” by the Block Club’s Rachel Hinton. — IT’S A WRAP: Organizers of the Democratic National Convention have finished moving out of the United Center — just in time for the Bulls season, according to the United Center. The DNC took over the arena in June and went on to rebuild it for the Aug. 19-22. It took another month for clean-up and putting the arena back in place the way Democrats got it.
| | COOK COUNTY AND COLLARS | | Chicago area's data center push continues as developer T5 breaks ground on Northlake facility, by the Sun-Times’ Abby Miller
| | DAY IN COURT | | — Hundreds of former detainees allege rampant sexual abuse in Illinois and Cook County youth detention centers: “The complaints, filed Monday in the Illinois Court of Claims and Cook County Circuit Court, detailed widespread abuse from 1996 to 2021. The more than 270 plaintiffs in the lawsuits — about 40 women and 230 men — join hundreds of others who have alleged similar abuse,” by the Tribune’s Rebecca Johnson.
| | TAKING NAMES | | — Secret trusts, a bitter divorce and the battle over one of America’s biggest homes: “A roughly 50,000-square-foot Los Angeles estate is slated to come on the market following a lengthy fight between billionaire Tony Pritzker and philanthropist Jeanne Pritzker,” by The Wall Street Journal’s Candace Taylor.
| | | Reader Digest | | | We asked where you go for inspiration. Susan Evans: “The Botanic Garden or Art Institute of Chicago.” Adam Gunther: “Walking around Uptown! Particularly Clarendon Park and Cricket Hill.” Fred Lebed: “Isle Royale National Park.” Ed Mazur: “To the Tiffany Dome in the Chicago Cultural Center and its wonderful inscriptions give me inspiration.” Marilynn Miller: “Renwick Lake in Plainfield and the Rock Run in Joliet. Both lakes (or ponds) are created out of old limestone quarries, and their beautiful parks give me peace. I leave feeling refreshed.” Greg O’Neill: “I’m inspired seeing people that selflessly volunteer their time to help save democracy this election cycle. People who have no personal ego or agenda driving it.” Alison Pure-Slovin: “To videos and posts from Rachel Goldberg Polin. She continues to inspire a nation while mourning her son.” Jane Ruby: “Art museums. Art has a beautiful way to get you thinking about the world differently.” Patricia Ann Watson: “Meaningful music, classic books, watching kids discover, the presence of cats, studying the nighttime sky.” Next question: What's one thing you’re most proud of in your hometown? Email skapos@politico.com
| | THE NATIONAL TAKE | | — Trump allies warn: Stay on message, stop with the distractions, by POLITICO’s Alex Isenstadt and Meridith McGraw — Biden breaks with environmentalists, House Dems on chip bill, by POLITICO’s Brendan Bordelon, Christine Mui and Kelsey Brugger — Inside the break between the U.S. and Israel over how to handle Hezbollah, by POLITICO’s Erin Banco
| | EVENTS | | — Oct. 15: “Fixing Illinois’ Pensions” is the subject of a Better Government Association forum with Illinois Deputy Gov. for Budget Andy Manar, state Sen. Robert Martwick, state Reps. Steve Reick and Stephanie Kifowit and moderator David Greising, president of the BGA. Details here
| | TRIVIA | | TUESDAY’s ANSWER: Congrats to Gail Purkey for correctly answering that Moses "Moe" Annenberg who got his start as a "circulator" for the American, a Chicago Hearst paper. TODAY’s QUESTION: Which nation offered meeting space to Frederick Douglass and Ida B. Wells during Chicago’s 1893 Columbian Exposition? Email skapos@politico.com
| | HAPPY BIRTHDAY | | Former Congressman Jerry Costello, former state Sen. Rick Winkel, U.S. Small Business Administration’s Associate Administrator Han Nguyen, Cornerstone Government Affairs’ Kirsten West, Culloton Bauer Luce’s Natalie Bauer Luce, AFL-CIO Comms Director Alyssa Goodstein, The Times of Northwest Indiana Co-Editor Mary Jane Grandinetti, sportswriter Ed Sherman and journalists Jack Zahora and Paul Meincke. -30- | | | | Follow us on Twitter | | | | Subscribe to the POLITICO Playbook family Playbook | Playbook PM | California Playbook | Florida Playbook | Illinois Playbook | Massachusetts Playbook | New Jersey Playbook | New York Playbook | Ottawa Playbook | Brussels Playbook | London Playbook View all our political and policy newsletters | | Follow us | | | | |
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