TGIF, Illinois. President Donald Trump has been back in office just four days, and we’re all worn out.
TOP TALKER
The Will Group founder Steve Davis is flanked by Juliana Stratton, left, JB Pritzker, Brandon Johnson, Rahm Emanuel and Kristin Richards, with the Department of Commerce and Economic Development. | Shia Kapos/POLITICO
THERE WAS SOME DRAMA at a press conference Thursday announcing the completion of a $10 million grant program to support small Illinois businesses like The Will Group, which is expanding its factory in the North Lawndale neighborhood.
Gov. JB Pritzker was there and so was Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson, so onlookers kept an eye out for how the two got along, given they’ve had a frosty relationship. Our view: They were friendly-ish.
Former Mayor Rahm Emanuel, who returned to Chicago after serving as ambassador to Japan, was there, too, which caused a stir. It was his first public appearance back in town. Turns out The Will Group’s transformation started under his administration.
They all spoke up to defend Illinois and Chicago’s sanctuary status as well as policies that support diversity, equity and inclusion.
Pritzker called President Donald Trump’s “attack” on DEI an attempt to “tear down” Civil Rights in the U.S., a reference to Trump banning federal DEI programs.
Lt. Gov. Julianna Stratton said “We know our businesses need to be as diverse as our communities.”
Emanuel’s take: “If you don’t know what diversity, equity and inclusion looks like, come on out here to North Lawndale. That’s what it looks like,” he said,
And Johnson cut to the chase: “Any measures that the president is looking to execute against working people in the city of Chicago, we will defend our city. It’s just that simple.”
Some activists were in the room, too, calling out questions, including whether it was Democrats, not Republicans, who are “throwing chaos and confusion” over deportation efforts. Pritzker responded, his voice raised, “What are you talking about? They are literally threatening people all across the country.”
It was an example of President Donald Trump’s huge presence over politics and policies of the day, even at a ribbon-cutting press conference in West Lawndale.
“The right of an individual born in this country to be a citizen of this country was enshrined in the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution more than 150 years ago following the Civil War. No president has the authority to override the Constitution. Period," Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul said in a statement.
WHERE'S JB
At the Oak Lawn-Hometown Early Learning Center at 10 a.m. to announce new preschool seats through Smart Start Illinois
WHERE's BRANDON
No official public events
Where's Toni
At Three Crosses of Calvary Baptist Church at 1 p.m. to mark the opening of the Westside Health Authority's Good Neighbor Community Development Center in Garfield Park
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SPOTLIGHT
— HELPING FIRE VICTIMS: The state of Illinois is offering some disaster tax relief to Illinoisans with southern California homes or businesses affected by the recent wildfires. Affected taxpayers now have until Oct. 15 to file tax returns and make tax payments (instead of April 15). "This additional time will allow them to gather essential paperwork without added stress,” Gov. JB Pritzker said in a statement.
By the numbers: As of 2023, there were 37,375 Illinois taxpayers who filed a return with a California address. Of that, 3,693 taxpayers had an address in the City of Los Angeles, according to the Illinois Department of Revenue.
— State Rep. Abdelnasser Rashid, a Democrat from Bridgeview, has introduced legislation aimed at curbing the political influence of ComEd and other public utilities in Illinois. “HB 1621 would prohibit public utilities from making political contributions to state or municipal candidates or political action committees (PACs) organized to support those candidates,” his team says.
CHICAGO
— Chicago teachers strike threat elevated as CTU leader cries foul: “Chicago Teachers Union President Stacy Davis Gates says a fact-finding process underway now is ‘stacked against’ the CTU, opening the door for a strike as early as March,” by WBEZ’s Sarah Karp.
— COVID 5 YEARS LATER | St. Alexius doctors in Hoffman Estates recall fear, anxiety of treating nation’s 2nd Covid patient: A Chicago woman in her 60s had returned to O'Hare International Airport on Jan. 13 from visiting family in China. “Who would have thunk it, that we had a worldwide pandemic and the person is in Hoffman Estates,” said Dr. Lynwood Jones, by the Daily Herald’s Eric Peterson.
— Businessman Ron Onesti was re-elected president of the Joint Civic Committee of Italian Americans. To celebrate the occasion, he was serenaded by Christopher Macchio, "America's Tenor," who sang at President Donald Trump’s inauguration Monday. Macchio flew to Chicago from D.C. for the Onesti’s installation.
— Shawn Vincent, CEO of Loyola Medicine, CEO of Saint Joseph Health System and president of the Trinity Health Illinois/Indiana Region, has been elected to serve as chair of the board of trustees for the Illinois Health and Hospital Association.
New Year. New Washington. New Playbook. With intensified congressional coverage and even faster delivery of policy scoops, POLITICO’s reimagined Playbook Newsletter ensures you’re always ahead of the conversation. Sign up today.
Reader Digest
We asked about your learning-to-drive stories.
Susan Burritt: “I learned in Resurrection Cemetery in Justice, Ill., from my Aunt Therese while my mother, aunts and cousins planted petunias over lots of dead relatives.”
Dave Dahl: “The driver's ed car had no radio.”
Thomas Day: “I slammed my mom's car into a wood post in front of Penn State's Beaver Stadium. That one act likely initiated the Nittany Lions' near-unbroken, three-decade string of futility against the Buckeyes. It caused ‘the curse.’”
Daniel Goldwin: “After 1 hour of a road-driving lesson in a manual transmission car, the instructor said, ‘Make sure your parents get you an automatic.’”
Marianne Goss: "I learned on my family’s stick-shift car. When I killed the engine repeatedly, Dad grew impatient and said, 'You don’t have to drive.' The next day, I had no problem shifting. He scared me into doing it."
Michael Halpin: “I learned by driving through the former Chicago Union Stockyards. It’s industrial but with wide streets and little traffic.”
John Mark Hansen: “First day in the car. The instructor looks at the three of us and says, ‘Good. You’re all farm boys. You already know how to drive, right?’ We all nodded. A classmate then turns the wheel hard and floors it, putting a 6-foot scrape down the side of the principal’s car.”
Mark Heffington: “I first learned on the farm on a 1947 Farmall H pulling a hay wagon through the field. I was 7 years old.”
Kevin Morris: “My high school drivers-ed instructor was also my homeroom adviser and sophomore basketball coach. I was captive and the discussion focused more on my academics and what I needed to improve on the court!”
Dave Nayak: “Teaching my young children (10 and 12) to drive on our farm has been one the most enjoyable yet stressful events of fatherhood.”
Joan Pederson: “Practicing right and left turns on quiet Kenwood streets after supper, Dad at my side gently giving guidance.”
Gail Purkey: “Three of us in a car with the teacher, and the flat tire happened with me behind the wheel.”
Judith Weinstein: “I’ll say it in a Haiku: Determined to learn. Stick shift in San Fran--. Clutch! Stalled again.”
Next question: When did you realize Covid was going to be big? Email skapos@politico.com
THURSDAY’s ANSWER: Congrats to Matthew Beaudet and John Straus for correctly answering that Normal, Ill., was the home of the original Steak ‘n’ Shake.
TODAY’s QUESTION: What kind of novel advertising did Sears & Roebuck use after it opened its first retail in Chicago? Email skapos@politico.com
HAPPY BIRTHDAY
Today: Retired Springfield Ald. Joe McMenamin, former Secretary of State Press Secretary Dave Druker, Lieutenant Governor’s Office Policy Manager Ariana Correa, pension expert and Springfield lobbyist Eric Madiar, attorney and Prairie State College Trustee Jay Readey, Enterprise Community Partners CEO and former HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan and actress Carrie Coon.
Saturday: Obama Foundation Executive VP and Chief Strategy Officer Tina Tchen, Cleveland Avenue Managing Partner Andrea Zopp, GPG Strategies CEO Michael Axelrod, Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning Executive Director Erin Aleman, 22nd Ward chief of staff Elianne Bahena, CBS 2’s Suzanne Le Mignot, Fig Media President Michele Gustin and Laura Bagby, comms director at the Illinois Supreme Court Commission on Professionalism.
Sunday: Retired Judge Sheldon “Shelly” Harris, MyOwnDoctor telehealth CEO Cheryle Jackson, LIFT Management President Robin Loewenberg Tebbe, Wells Fargo strategy exec Jon Tomashoff and K+P Advisory President Ayse Kalaycioglu.
