Republican state rep says Democrat Madigan has ‘personal’ interest in beating him
SPRINGFIELD — What happens when a legislative race becomes “personal” to House Speaker Michael Madigan? Longtime state Rep. Angelo “Skip” Saviano (R-Elmwood Park) is about to find out. Saviano’s less-than-certain re-election effort is among a group of hotly fought down-ballot Statehouse campaigns in Chicago and the suburbs. The 10-term incumbent faces Addison school board member Kathleen Willis, a Republican-turned-Democrat who has run a near-invisible campaign funded mostly by Madigan’s largesse.
Rev. Jesse Jackson says son going to Mayo for checkup
The Rev. Jesse Jackson says his congressman son will return to Minnesota’s Mayo Clinic for a checkup. The elder Jackson said Sunday that doctors will determine whether the congressman needs to stay longer. The Sun-Times has reported that the younger Jackson is on his way back to the clinic.
Rahm hits Florida to boost Obama
Mayor Rahm Emanuel invoked the Democrats’ worst nightmare Saturday — the 2000 Florida recount that lost the White House for Al Gore — during campaign stops for President Barack Obama intended to energize his base vote. He also is in Florida to help shore up Obama’s Jewish support. In an Obama campaign office in Temple Terrace, a Tampa suburb, he said, “We all know what happened in 2000. . . . Each one of you is responsible for 500 votes. Now is the time to get them.”
Preckwinkle ‘friends’ Berrios — even though she thinks he’s wrong to hire relatives
Cook County Assessor Joe Berrios may be under fire, but he’s still got a friend in a fellow Democrat, Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle.
As the Sun-Times first reported in Tuesday’s paper, Berrios is thumbing his nose at a subpoena issued by the county’s …
Cook County to expand training of first responders
Cook County officials said they’re expanding training for cops, firefighters and other first responders — who heard Tuesday from two Norwegian cops who dealt with the terror attacks that killed 77 people in their country.
In the past, the county didn’t sponsor much training like …
Toni Preckwinkle says ‘no’ to possible run for governor in 2014
Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle says count her out for a run for governor in two years. Although Preckwinkle’s name has been floated for a possible 2014 bid and her supporters have done some polling, the Democrat was emphatic on Tuesday. When asked before …
Downtown alderman: We need more bike cops to combat crime
Downtown Ald. Brendan Reilly (42nd) acknowledged Monday that there is a perception of rising crime on Chicago’s Near North Side, that “perception is reality” and that more bike patrols are needed to help reverse that negative image.
Shot fired at Obama campaign office in Denver
DENVER — Denver police are reviewing video footage from city surveillance cameras after a shot was fired through the window of President Barack Obama’s campaign office. Police spokeswoman Raquel Lopez says cameras are in the area of the campaign office on West Ninth Avenue near …
ANALYSIS: Emanuel needs to give new CPS boss space
Second marriages — romantic or professional — can be better than the first, but only if you learn from and don’t repeat past mistakes.
Whether the professional marriage between Rahm Emanuel and Barbara Byrd-Bennett will last longer than the 17-month-long and newly annulled first marriage …
Preckwinkle seeking legal action against county assessor
Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle said Wednesday she supports legal action to punish county Assessor Joseph Berrios for putting family members on the payroll.
Walsh, Duckworth trade barbs over whistleblower lawsuit
As the head of the Illinois Department of Veterans Affairs, congressional candidate Tammy Duckworth is accused of firing an employee after the woman filed a complaint against her supervisor.
Duckworth allegedly told the woman: “If you do your job and keep your mouth shut and …
Tuesday is last day to register to vote
Tuesday is the deadline for voter registration, and officials are bracing for last-minute applications even though they say the pre-election frenzy of 2008 is missing. Voter registration in Chicago and suburban Cook County is down slightly from 2008. And in the suburban counties, registration numbers …
Obama team raised $181 million in September
President Barack Obama’s campaign manager Jim Messina announced Saturday raising $181 million in September, between the campaign and the Democratic National Committee, the biggest month of the 2012 campaign. Mitt Romney’s campaign has not released September totals. In August, Romney’s campaign and the Republican National …
10th congressional District Pricey race pits Dold vs. Schneider
It isn’t too tough to get U.S. Rep. Bob Dold going. Just ask the 10th Congressional District Republican representing the North Shore whether he’s affiliated with the Tea Party, as his opponent, Brad Schneider, a Democrat, has repeatedly said in mailings throughout the district. Dold …
For northwest Illinois’ economy, Thomson prison ‘going to be good’
In Thomson, a struggling town of fewer than 600 people on the northwest edge of Illinois, good jobs are nearly as scarce as inmates at the vacant Thomson Correctional Center.
