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| By Shia Kapos |
Presented by The Illinois Hotel & Lodging Association |
Happy Tuesday, Illinois. On this day in 1960, John F. Kennedy debated Richard M. Nixon in Chicago for the first televised presidential debate. The lesson: wear makeup.
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 | TOP TALKER | |
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 House Judiciary Committee Chair Jim Jordan, speaking during a July hearing on Capitol Hill, is holding a hearing on crime in Chicago. | AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana |
Ohio Congressman Jim Jordan is bringing a sideshow to Chicago today while the clock is ticking in Washington to avoid a government shutdown. Top of the card: The Republican chair of the House Judiciary Committee is holding a field hearing to address violence in Chicago. Democrats call it a stunt — the kind of event that you’d expect from a guy who made headlines as a wrestler (albeit in high school and college) before he became a brawler in Congress. Turning up the heat: Jordan tweeted a screed of stories Monday about crime in Chicago. “This is what happens when Democrats run your city,” he posted about a story of armed robberies. At the hearing: Local activist Gianno Caldwell, whose brother was killed in Morgan Park last year, says he’ll testify. "This is not a stunt. Thank God for the light that they're shining on the situation in the city of Chicago,” he told ABC 7’s Craig Wall. With Hulk Hogan vibrato: Democrats decried the spectacle, saying Jordan is using Chicago to create a narrative that detracts from the real work at hand: keeping the government from shutting down. Congressman Danny Davis called the GOP forum “purely political.” Gov. JB Pritzker described it as “fearmongering and lies.” And state Rep. La Shawn Ford said Republicans “look petty.” Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx, who is expected to get the brunt of Jordan’s criticism, accused Jordan of “seeking to exploit the deaths of Black and brown victims of crime, rather than supporting common sense gun legislation.” The forum will be held at the Fraternal Order of Police Headquarters. From Sun-Times’ Tina Sfondeles: “Jordan held a similar ‘field hearing’ in New York in April — taking aim at Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, the prosecutor who charged former President Donald Trump with falsifying New York business records. Jordan used the hearing to call Bragg ‘soft-on-crime.’” RELATED Food stamps, free lunch, airplane inspections: What’s hit when the government shuts down, via POLITICO
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| THE BUZZ | |
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Congressman Mike Quigley, photographed during an AP interview in his office in 2021, is running for reelection. | AP Photo/Alex Brandon |
IN IT TO WIN IT: Congressman Mike Quigley (IL-05) has had it up to here with political gamesmanship and government showdowns, but he’s not ready to call it quits. Contrary to any social media blather, the Democratic congressman from Chicago’s North Side is running for reelection — and with a vengeance. Quoting Mark Twain: “Reports of my demise are greatly exaggerated,” Quigley told Playbook. “There’s a lot still to do. We’re at a turning point in our democracy for the 2024 election.” Quigley saw a post saying he might not run. “It’s not true,” he said, adding he’s got a more robust petition program than he’s had since his first campaign. Quigley has been in office 14 years and considered a run for mayor last year. That may have precipitated the rumor that he’s ready to call it quits. But he says no way is he hanging up his congressional hat. “I’m not in the first quarter of my political career, but I’m not in the last quarter either,” he said. “Given how unpleasant politics has been since Jan. 6, with the threats and the toxic atmosphere, no pay raises for 15 years, I can see why people leave,” he said. Quigley hopes Democrats can win back the House in 2024 — and if they do, he expects to chair the powerful Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Subcommittee. “We have to save all the big cities, and I’d be in the right spot to do that if we win back the House. I’m pumped up about that.” He’s also been around long enough to know that up-and-coming Democrats in his district might be eyeing his seat. State Rep. Margaret Croke and Chicago Ald. Matt Martin both could be potential candidates for Congress, but they told Playbook they have no plans on running in 2024. Federal campaign filings show two Dems who are gathering signatures: Jerico Matias Cruz and Daniel Wozniczka. If you are Jim Jordan, Playbook would like to hear from you. Email skapos@politico.com
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| A message from The Illinois Hotel & Lodging Association: Hotel property values in Chicago have plummeted as much as 50% in the last five years and investors are already saying NO to purchasing Chicago hotels. The Bring Chicago Home Proposal would quadruple the real estate transfer tax, giving investors yet another reason to take their business elsewhere. Tell your alderperson to vote NO on the Real Estate Transfer Tax hike and instead focus on ways to grow the city’s tourism and hospitality industries. |
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| WHERE'S JB | |
No official public events.
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| | WHERE's BRANDON | |
| No official public events.
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| | Where's Toni | |
No official public events. Bob Menendez’s stubbornness shouldn’t keep you from sending a line: skapos@politico.com
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| Join Lincoln Forum on Oct. 4 at 11:30 a.m., in partnership with the Union League Club & POLITICO, as we host Illinois Tollway Executive Director Cassaundra Rouse and Tollway Board Chairman Arnie Rivera. Be the first to hear the Tollway's vision to boost economic opportunities, advance equity, and meet the region’s needs in its next strategic and capital plan. Register here: https://bit.ly/44EebiC |
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| THE STATEWIDES | |
— BIG PICTURE| Manteno battery plant is first coup in Illinois EV ambitions: “Electric vehicles have far fewer parts, which means many of the manufacturing jobs will involve making batteries. Until Gotion selected Manteno, Illinois was on the outside looking in as other states, such as Michigan and Tennessee, racked up multiple wins,” by Crain’s John Pletz. — Senior ‘centers’: The Illinois Secretary of State’s Office is creating two “senior only” motor vehicle centers — one in Evanston and another in Bridgeview. The additions come after the office added a Skip-the-Line Program, which Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias said is “functioning at a high level in the few weeks since its official launch,” according to a statement. “But we can still make improvements with targeted adjustments.” NBC 5’s Matt Stefanski reports — OPINION: Supporting women in their careers sometimes comes with a big move, explains State Treasurer Mike Frerichs on his own move to northern Illinois, via Daily Herald
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| | CHICAGO | |
| — BUDGET BONANZA | There’s a pot of city money that doesn’t get scrutinized: It’s a “catch-all category called ‘finance general’ for budgeted expenditures not assigned to a specific department.” And more items are being added to it every year, reports Better Government Association’s Geoffrey Cubbage. — Chicago’s migrant crisis tied to U.S. foreign policy: “As many Ukrainians roughly have come to the United States in the last couple of years, as have Venezuelans. There is no narrative in the media that the Ukrainians are creating a crisis. Why not? Because the government is quietly integrating them into the society,” says Juan González, a senior fellow at the Great Cities Institute. WBEZ’s Esther Yoon-Ji Kang reports. — News tidbit in this broad story about migrants: 12 busloads of asylum-seekers, more than in any two-day period since the crisis began last year, arrived in Chicago over the weekend, by Sun-Times’ Michael Loria — Ald. Jim Gardiner violated First Amendment by blocking critics from official Facebook page, judge rules, via WTTW’s Heather Cherone
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| A message from The Illinois Hotel & Lodging Association:   |
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| SPOTLIGHT | |
IT WASN’T SMOOTH SAILING: During her four-year term, former Mayor Lori Lightfoot "oversaw the most tumultuous City Council meetings since the 1980s,” according to a new report titled “Lori Lightfoot's Mayoralty: A Divided Council Begets Chicago's New Factionalism.” But it wasn’t the ‘80s, either: “The conflict between her administration and the council did not mean that the city returned to the ‘council wars’ that existed under Mayor Harold Washington. Instead, it led to the emergence of a divided council where Mayor Lightfoot mostly accomplished her legislative goals, but often through necessary compromises,” write political scientists Marco Rosaire Rossi and Thomas J. Gradel. Full report here
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| TAKING NAMES | |
— Madeleine Doubek is stepping down as executive director of CHANGE Illinois and the CHANGE Illinois Action Fund. “I've decided it's time for me to step back and make room for new leadership,” she said in an email to friends. Doubek will “semi-retire” after a new executive director is named. — Mark Kupsky, mayor of Fairview Heights, has been elected president of the Illinois Municipal League. He's served on the group’s board and was elected first VP in 2022. — Scott Turow to be awarded the Fuller Prize from Literary Hall of Fame, by Tribune’s Rick Kogan
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| GO INSIDE THE CAPITOL DOME: From the outset, POLITICO has been your eyes and ears on Capitol Hill, providing the most thorough Congress coverage — from political characters and emerging leaders to leadership squabbles and policy nuggets during committee markups and hearings. We're stepping up our game to ensure you’re fully informed on every key detail inside the Capitol Dome, all day, every day. Start your day with Playbook AM, refuel at midday with our Playbook PM halftime report and enrich your evening discussions with Huddle. Plus, stay updated with real-time buzz all day through our brand new Inside Congress Live feature. Learn more and subscribe here. |
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| Reader Digest | |
We asked how you handle your favorite team's bad luck Rev. Dr. William E. Crowder Jr.: “I will still purchase a Bears #1 jersey and wear it!” Andrew Davis: “I'm sticking with the Bears through this losing streak, but I'm also realistic: They're watching the next Super Bowl, not going to it.” Lawrence Falbe: “I never pay attention until the playoffs anyway.” Mark Huddle: “I keep in mind that the stoic philosopher Epictetus taught that it is best to minimize the inner turbulence caused by events outside our control. And going three rounds on the heavy bag helps, too.” Mike Ragen: “I still go to the games and watch away games. No change in loyalty.” Lucy Smith: “The Bears �� for me = avoidance and a temporary sadness I didn’t think I was capable of having. ... On Sunday, I tuned in for 37 seconds. I was slightly relieved by the Miami/Denver score.” Steve Smith: “I still watch every Sox game!” Barbara Stubblefield: “I am a since-I-was-a-kid, DIE-HARD Bears fan, as well as Sox (Go South Side!). I’m all in, rooting for them as they win, and then fussing at them as they lose.” What do you hope to see from this week’s GOP debate? Email skapos@politico.com
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| THE NATIONAL TAKE | |
— 7 candidates made the cut for tomorrow’s GOP presidential debate, by POLITICO’s Zach Montellaro and Meridith McGraw — Washington Dems who have called on Bob Menendez to resign following his federal indictment: From Illinois, only Congressman Sean Casten — Bob Menendez’s defiance could be an electoral nightmare for Democrats, by POLITICO’s Matt Friedman |
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| A message from The Illinois Hotel & Lodging Association: Hotels are a driving force for Chicago’s economy. But City Hall is putting their post-pandemic recovery at risk by proposing to quadruple the real estate transfer take. The proposal would give Chicago one of the highest transfer taxes compared to competitive cities and give investors another reason to take their business elsewhere. To sustainably increase revenues needed to support important programs, including reducing homelessness, we should instead focus on ways to ensure the long-term success of the city’s tourism and hospitality industries. Tell your alderperson to REJECT the proposal to increase the real estate transfer tax and instead focus on ways to grow the city’s tourism and hospitality industries. |
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| WEDDING BELLS | |
— Chuck Swirsky and Joseph Hendel tied the knot at the U.S. Capitol on the 21st night of September (ala Earth Wind and Fire). Officiating was Swirsky’s longtime former boss and confidant Connecticut Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro. Swirsky is senior adviser to the Chicago Public Schools CEO, and Hendel works for American Airlines. Pic!
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| EVENTS | |
— Wednesday: Americans for Prosperity-Illinois is holding a GOP debate watch party. Details here — Monday: One Aim Illinois, a nonprofit focused on ending gun violence, is holding its inaugural fundraiser. Register here
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| TRIVIA | |
MONDAY’s ANSWER: Congrats to Vern Broders and water board Commissioner Mariyana Spyropoulos for correctly answering that Chicago’s Wacker Drive runs north, south, east and west. TODAY’s QUESTION: Who were the Illinois U.S. senators expelled from their posts? Email skapos@politico.com
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| HAPPY BIRTHDAY | |
Former state Rep. Tim Schmitz, Republican operative Matt Butcher, Stricklin & Associates partner Jessica Fuentes O’Neill, PR pro Debra Baum, Ipsos Senior Research Manager Charlie Rollason, state Rep. Laura Faver Dias Chief of Staff Kathryn Holmes and journalist Phil Ponce. -30- |
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