| | | | |  | | By Shia Kapos | | Presented by |  | | | TGIF, Illinois. It looks like plenty of sunshine for canvassing this weekend.
|  | TOP TALKER | | LIKE CATS AND DOGS: Chicago’s first elected school board races are creating friction between the city’s Democrats and the Chicago Teachers Union, two organizations that until recently have been mostly aligned. The division has been fueled by the political campaigns of candidates running for the first elected school board in Chicago. The CTU has funded political action committees that are paying for mailers that describe opponents — who are Democrats, mind you — as “Trumpy” and being supporters of Project 2025, the blueprint for a Republican in the White House. Fake news: “There are Democratic candidates who have never voted for a Republican in their life, and they're getting labeled as right-wing extremists,” said Hugo Jacobo is director of Chicago Democrats for Education, an organization that’s backing independent candidates running for the school board. “This is just like a disinformation campaign.” CTU’s take: A spokesperson said the union supports the campaigns of its candidates. “We stand by it. The people funding charter schools and funding Project 2025 are the same, with the same goals: privatize schools, defund public education and destroy unions.” Campaigns of numerous independent candidates have been targeted, but two stand out. Flyers paid for by a CTU PAC have targeted Karin Norington-Reaves, who’s running in the 10th District that encompasses the Bronzeville, Kenwood, Hyde Park and South Shore neighborhoods on the South Side. Norington-Reaves ran for Congress two years ago as a Democrat and earlier was CEO of the Chicago Cook Workforce Partnership, which connects teens to jobs. It was started by Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle and then-Mayor-elect Rahm Emanuel. Point being, Norington-Reaves is as Democrat as they come. Flyers paid for by another CTU PAC have targeted Ellen Rosenfeld in the 4th District that includes the North Side neighborhoods of Lincoln Park, Lakeview and Uptown. They say Rosenfeld, a lifelong Democrat, is connected to Donald Trump and out-of-state billionaires who support Project 2025. "I think there is a desperate attempt by Mayor Johnson and by the Chicago Teachers Union to win every single seat on this board so they can continue to push forward an agenda for one party," Rosenfeld told ABC 7’s Sarah Schulte. Rosenfeld is married to Paul Rosenfeld , the 47th Ward Democratic committeeperson, who has previously worked with the CTU to support candidates for other offices. It’s not likely to happen again. Democrats are also upset that the PAC targeting Ellen Rosenfeld is run by Ishan Daya, who made headlines for tearing down posters of hostages from the Oct. 7, 2023, attack in Israel. The cut-throat campaigning is “pissing off” a lot of Democrats, according to one insider who could not give their name for fear of retribution from the CTU. For now … The attack ads are unifying a large swath of Democrats against the CTU. That may change if the union wins big on Nov. 5, and Democrats have to find a way to work with CTU again. “It’s become a litmus test, if you’re an ally of the CTU. That’s the litmus test in the city of Chicago, and I think that is a dividing point,” said former Congressman Luis Gutiérrez, who’s endorsing three candidates who are running against CTU for the school board. “The mayor needs to be introspective and put a little more distance between [him and the CTU] and be a little more objective,” said Gutiérrez, referring to Mayor Brandon Johnson’s allegiance to the CTU, which helped elect him. The CTU is “the new political boss in Chicago. And we should be free of political bosses.” RELATED New Chicago school board members swear themselves in: “The school board that Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson appointed earlier this month amid a dramatic leadership shakeup met for the first time Thursday. But following months of district turmoil, it was a mostly uneventful meeting at which the seven new members were sworn in and reviewed the agenda for next Friday’s meeting,” by Chalkbeat’s Mila Koumpilova
| | THE BUZZ | | SWINNING IN SWING STATES: Sen. Tammy Duckworth, who serves as campaign co-chair of the Harris-Walz campaign, has become a campaign road warrior, traveling across the country ahead of the Nov. 5 election. So far in the past month, Duckworth made a campaign swing in Milwaukee, Madison and Racine, Wisconsin, to support Harris and Walz and fellow Sen. Tammy Baldwin. Duckworth traveled to Georgia to talk to veterans groups and do phone-banking and to Ohio to support Sen. Sherrod Brown (her second stop for the fellow senator). She’s headed next to Pennsylvania and Nevada in support of Sens. Bob Casey and Jacky Rosen and the Harris-Walz campaign as Election Day draws near. Mayor Brandon Johnson will travel to Pittsburgh this weekend to campaign for the Harris-Walz ticket. This follows surrogate work in Detroit and Las Vegas. State Rep. Kam Buckner will travel to North Carolina on Sunday as part of the Harris-Walz campaign’s "Souls to Polls," which mobilizes Black churches and community leaders to encourage early voting. Congressman Brad Schneider was in Philadelphia with canvassers targeting Jewish voters, via Jewish Telegraph Agency And State Rep. Hoan Huynh was in Georgia Thursday as part of an AAPI get-the-vote-out effort with the AAPI Forward Super PAC. “Ten thousand doors in the next four days,” Huynh said. If you are Tammy Duckworth, Playbook would like to hear from you! Email: skapos@politico.com
| | WHERE'S JB | | At Morgan Manufacturing at 7 p.m. to give remarks at La Casa Norte Annual Gala Esperanza
| | WHERE's BRANDON | | At Collins Academy High School at 2 p.m. with School Board President Mitchell Johnson.
| | Where's Toni | | At the Lansing Municipal Center at 9:30 a.m. to celebrate Pace’s new On Demand service in the area. Have a tip, suggestion, birthday, new job or (heaven forbid) a complaint? Email: skapos@politico.com
| | A message from Capital One: At Capital One, our affordable housing initiatives support inclusive, thriving, resident-centered communities right here in Illinois. We strive to promote individual well-being by financing both the development and preservation of affordable housing, along with services that directly respond to resident needs. From 2020-2023, we provided nearly $378 million in capital for community development across the state – primarily for safe, equitable, and quality housing to help transform resident lives. Learn more here. | | | | | CAMPAIGN MODE | | — Democratic candidate for Cook circuit court clerk promises modernization, transparency; Opponent silent, by the Daily Herald’s Barbara Vitello — Illinois residents can voice their opinion on ranked choice voting, by News 25’s RaShaun Haynes
| | THE STATEWIDES | | — THE MADIGAN TRIAL: Dozens of secret recordings at Madigan trial show close ties with McClain, undercutting key defense point: “The week began with Michael Madigan’s attorneys insisting no one had the right to speak for the speaker — that Madigan was ‘“ignorant’ of what people said behind his back. His chief ally, Michael McClain, is on trial with him,” by the Sun-Times’ Jon Seidel and Matthew Hendrickson and WBEZ’s Dave McKinney. — FIRST IN PLAYBOOK: Flags will be lowered Monday in honor of U.S. Army Corporal Eriverto Ortiz, who was killed in action at age 27 in 1950 during the Korean War. “His body could not be recovered due to the intense fighting in Pusan, South Korea, and was declared nonrecoverable by the US Army in 1956,” according to a statement. DNA analysis was used to identify him, and he will be returned to his family Monday when he'll be buried with full military honors in Elgin. State Rep. Anna Moeller led the charge to lower the flags to honor him. — Seriously: Stormy Daniels bringing stand-up comedy act to central Illinois, by the State Journal-Register’s Steven Spearie
| | CHICAGO | | — Chicago Police Department exodus: New cops are leaving in droves, Sun-Times investigation finds, by Frank Main and Tom Schuba — Pending lawsuit over police overtime pay could worsen Chicago budget debt crisis, by ABC 7’s Craig Wall — The one-of-a-kind waterfront Midwest road highlighting some of the world's best architecture, by Jon Bitne in Islands — On Sunday: Wrongful Convictions Town Hall will be hosted by Ald. Gilbert “Gil” Villegas to address his resolution for hearings on wrongful conviction liability that the city faces. Details here
| | | COOK COUNTY AND COLLARS | | | — Greg Hart running for Hinsdale village president, by the Patch’s David Giuliani — Cook County Board approves new health system CEO, by the Tribune’s A.D. Quig — A skull was found in a Batavia house in 1978. They finally know who she was, by the Daily Herald’s Susan Sarkauskas
| | | | A message from Capital One:   | | | | | SPOTTED | | Gov. JB Pritzker stopped by a company kick-off party to congratulate Jordan Abudayyeh and Jason Rubin on starting ARC Strategies. The governor also made remarks congratulating his former comms staffers. The governor offered some insight on what it’s like behind the scenes of the governor’s office. “We worked together for seven years. And it was seven years of them rescuing me from making mistakes along the way,” he told the guests at The Exchange on Michigan Avenue. “Every day I would come out of a press conference, and I would call Jordan or Jason and say, ‘Was that OK? Did I make any major blunders there?’ And of course every time they would say, ‘Oh no. That was fine.’ And then they quickly made a few phone calls to clean up after me.” Also in the room: First lady MK Pritzker, Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton, the governor’s Chief of Staff Anne Caprara, state Rep. Margaret Croke, Illinois Department of Human Services Secretary Grace Hou, the governor’s Senior Political Adviser Mike Ollen, Magnify Strategy’s Kaitlin Fahey, lobbyist Liz Brown-Reeves, IRMA CEO Rob Karr, lobbyist Dave Sullivan, entrepreneurs Neal Zucker and Marko Iglendza, lobbyist Lisa Duarte, the lieutenant governor’s Chief of Staff Natashee Scott and Equality Illinois’ Jose Wilson.
| | Reader Digest | | We asked when your heart was broken in politics. Elena Maria Gottreich: “When a white politician I worked said it ‘wasn’t a good look’ to be having lunch with my Black coworkers. I swore off politics … for about a year.” Dave Lundy: “If you haven't had your heart broken, you haven't been in politics.” Gail Morse: “I’m a Democrat, so of course my heart has been broken. Hoping that is not going to happen in 2024!” Dennis A. Rendleman: “The second run of Gary Hart. Everything was on track for the nomination in 1988. I was a Hart delegate to the 1984 Convention and was organizing my downstate congressional district for '88 and had been to Colorado for meetings with Hart and the team. Then the ‘Follow me around’ statement in an interview killed it all.” Timothy Thomas: “Between November 1987 and April 1989, when there was a self-inflicted unraveling and dismantling of the late Mayor Harold Washington's movement, a setback from which the City of Chicago has yet to recover.” Barry Tusin : “Paul Wellstone. 'Nuff said.” Patricia Ann Watson: “Shattered when Hilary lost to Trump.” Next question: Where in Illinois do you for the best fall pictures? Email skapos@politico.com
| | A message from Capital One: At Capital One, we are committed to changing banking for good here in Illinois. We proudly employ more than 1,700 Chicagoans – who support this city from our offices and Cafés each day.
In the last 10+ years, we’ve provided over 500 grants to nonprofit organizations in Illinois, including programs that focus on community service, education, and workforce development. Our efforts are informed by a long-standing belief that our partners—who are closest to the needs of the community—are best positioned to develop effective and sustainable solutions. Deep community relationships with affordable housing developers, nonprofit organizations, local government, and civic leaders are at the heart of our community programs.
We are committed to continuing to spend with diverse suppliers operating in the state of Illinois, with over $8M in one year period spent with businesses owned by people of color, veterans, and women. Learn more here. | | | | | THE NATIONAL TAKE | | — Why Harris is barnstorming the Lone Star State, by POLITICO’s Megan Messerly and Eugene Daniels — Trump will use his Madison Square Garden rally to deliver his closing argument: That Harris broke America, by POLITICO’s Meridith McGraw — Biden to apologize for Native American boarding schools, by POLITICO’s Lauren Egan
| | TRIVIA | | THURSDAY’s ANSWER: Congrats to Mary Kay Minaghan for correctly answering that Pat Byrnes is the syndicated cartoonist who's married to former Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan, a Loyola University Chicago alum. TODAY’s QUESTION: Who was the Saturday Night Live cast member born in Springfield? Email skapos@politico.com
| | | HAPPY BIRTHDAY | | | Today: Appellate Court Judge Jesse Reyes, former state Sen. Brian Stewart and former Ald. Brian Doherty. Saturday: Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Ald. Gilbert “Gil” Villegas, former Congressman David Phelps, former Ald. James Cappleman, Secretary of State Chief of Staff Hanah Jubeh, Ignite Blue Partners founding partner Kaitlin Delaney , Chicago Teachers’ Pension Fund spokeswoman Michelle Holleman, HAP Foundation Comms Director Rachel French, Rabbi and dean of Ida Crown Jewish Academy Leonard Matanky, Silver Property Group’s Ron Abrams and WTTW co-anchor Brandis Friedman. Sunday: State Sen. Sue Rezin, City of Joliet Comms Director Rosemaria DiBenedetto, Suburban Unity Alliance founder Anthony Clark and fundraiser Liz Nicholson. -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 | | | | |
