Topspin Ald. Marty Quinn didn't want to talk to reporters at City Hall on Wednesday, little more than a week after his brother was ousted from a post in House Speaker Michael Madigan's Democratic organization after being accused of sexual harassment. "Good morning everybody," was all Quinn said to reporters who were lined up and asking him questions as he walked to a City Council committee hearing. When the meeting ended, Quinn signaled to Assistant Sergeant at Arms Curtis Franklin, who then walked between the 13th Ward alderman and reporters hurling questions. Quinn then walked silently through a locked door into aldermanic offices. Ald. Quinn is a top political lieutenant to House Speaker Michael Madigan, who also serves as chairman of the state Democratic Party. Madigan last week cut loose Quinn's brother, Kevin, after the Tribune interviewed Alaina Hampton, who has accused Kevin Quinn of sexual harassment. Hampton shared texts that detail a relentless series of entreaties from Kevin Quinn, her supervisor, to go out with him. He also commented on her appearance, calling her "smoking hot." Hampton said she told Ald. Quinn about his brother in February 2017 — a timeline Ald. Quinn confirmed in a statement issued last week. In that statement, he said he did not tell Madigan about Hampton's allegations after that discussion. (Hal Dardick) What's on tap *Mayor Rahm Emanuel will speak at a high school "Introduce a Girl to Engineering Day" event. *Gov. Bruce Rauner will tour a business in Bloomington. First lady Diana Rauner will be joined at a West Side behavioral health care center by Democratic state Rep. LaShawn Ford of Chicago and Republican Rep. David Olsen of Downers Grove. *U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders will be in Chicago for a rally to back Jesus "Chuy" Garcia's bid to succeed U.S. Rep. Luis Gutierrez in Congress. *U.S. Sen. Tammy Duckworth will visit a business in in the Back of the Yards neighborhood. *Democratic governor candidate J.B. Pritzker will have a news conference with the Chicago City Council's veterans caucus to talk about the veterans home in Quincy. From the notebook *Closing a loophole?: A Senate panel gave initial approval to legislation Wednesday to close a loophole that prevents staff working for lawmakers from filing a complaint under the Human Rights Act. Current law exempts immediate personal staff of elected officials from the definition of employee. That means they can't report violations, including allegations of sexual harassment. The legislation would remove that exclusion and allow workers to file a complaint with the Illinois Department of Human Rights, which investigates allegations of discrimination and harassment. The loophole came to light in the wake of the #MeToo movement and complaints that those working in and around the Capitol have little recourse when it comes to filing a complaint. Sponsoring Sen. Melinda Bush, D-Grayslake, said it's likely staff were left out of the law to prevent them from lodging complaints against their bosses. "That is something we are trying to rectify now," Bush said. (Monique Garcia) *Drury touts anti-Madigan vote in 1st TV ad: Now that he's secured a spot on the Democratic ballot, attorney general candidate Scott Drury is up with his first ad which takes shots at Speaker Madigan. Drury, a state representative from Highwood, tells voters to "imagine an Illinois without corruption." Then, Madigan's face appears as Drury says, "Unfortunately, machine politicians like things the way they are." Drury also notes in the ad that he was "the only Democratic legislator in the last 30 years with the courage not to vote for Mike Madigan for House Speaker." After that vote, Drury was the only House Democrat who did not receive an engraved desk clock commemorating Madigan's time in office. This summer, Drury compared Madigan to Lord Voldemort from the Harry Potter series. "I'm Scott Drury. I'm a Democrat, but I'm not like those guys," Drury says in the ad. (Rick Pearson) *Kaegi gets a boost: Cook County assessor candidate Fritz Kaegi picked up a couple more endorsements Wednesday from aldermen who say they are concerned about unfair property tax assessments harming lower-income homeowners. Ald. George Cardenas, 12th, and Ald. Danny Solis, 25th, sided with Kaegi over incumbent Assessor Joe Berrios. Solis's nod is particularly significant because he's both a longtime, influential alderman and a Democratic ward committeeman. "Since Joe Berrios has been assessor, he has ignored every voice begging him to change a deeply unfair property system," Solis said. "I was deeply troubled to see multiple independent studies confirm that the office is not only tilting the playing field against homeowners, but especially against black and brown families." (Hal Dardick) *Abortion law case appealed to Supreme Court: Attorneys fighting against the law Gov. Rauner signed to expand the availability of taxpayer-funded abortions have appealed their case to the Illinois Supreme Court. The Thomas More Society lost a round in Sangamon County court late last year. The lawsuit wants to keep the state from spending money on abortions as allowed under the new law, contending lawmakers did not specifically set aside money in the state budget to pay for the procedures. *Quick spin: Executive Inspector General Maggie Hickey will leave the Rauner administration in March for law firm Schiff Hardin. Hickey was a finalist for the Chicago-based U.S. attorney post that eventually went to John Lausch. What we're writing *Biss, Pritzker clash over who's the bigger Madigan ally, as Kennedy sits out debate with bad back. *Lipinski, Newman trade barbs at sole debate of nationally watched congressional primary race. *McCarthy 'cover-up' accusations on Laquan McDonald case don't square with prior remarks. *Thousands of students improperly won seats in CPS schools, a "pervasive problem," inspector general says. *Days after Parkland shooting, Illinois Democrats move toward licensing gun stores.
*Illinois voters could be asked in November about legalizing marijuana.
*Rauner "re-evaluating" whether to move veterans out of Quincy home after more Legionnaires' cases.
*Chicago-area high school students chanting "save our kids" stage walkouts to demand action on gun violence. *A cupcake truck owner is asking the state Supreme Court to hear its case against the city. What we're reading *Billy Graham's early ministry took hold in Chicago area, became a megaphone in Wheaton. *The U.S. Supreme Court rules for Chicago museums in case over Persian artifacts.
*In escort case, former exec pleads guilty to $5.8 million in company credit charges. Follow the money *Track Illinois campaign contributions in real time here and here. Beyond Chicago *Florida lawmakers face pressure over gun control proposals. *First lady Melania Trump's parents close to citizenship. *What might decide Dreamers' fates. *Hospitals couldn't keep up with Damascus bombing casualties. | 
沒有留言:
張貼留言