Category: Government

Reader’s Voice: Trump administration fighting colleges, our future

April 29, 2025Dear editor; Under the guise of a conveniently focused concern for antisemitism on our nation’s college campuses, the Donald Trump administration is attempting to impose its own political views and distorted realities on what has been for centuries the bastion of free thinking and independent research, our academic

Reader’s Voice: Black history is American history

May 1, 2025Dear editor; The Executive Order titled “Restoring Truth and Sanity to American History” was signed March 27, targeting the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC) for promoting an alleged “improper ideology.” This order threatens not only the ability of institutions to engage with the

Home invasions on the rise, Constitution-free policing

By John & Nisha Whitehead “One of the most essential branches of English liberty is the freedom of one’s house. A man’s house is his castle.”—James Otis, Revolutionary War activist, on the Writs of Assistance, 1761 What the Founders rebelled against—armed government agents invading homes without cause—we are now being

Illinois veterans, VA employees rally to protest expected Trump administration cuts

By Sonya DymovaMedill Illinois News Bureaunews@capitolnewsillinois.com John Gerend, a Vietnam War veteran from Lake Villa, Ill., was exposed to Agent Orange while on duty. Suffering from diseases associated with exposure to the toxic chemical, he said he still considers himself fortunate. “I’ve had some issues with it — diabetes, some

Durbin to retire; Stratton replacement?

By Ben SzalinskiCapitol News Illinoisbszalinski@capitolnewsillionis.com Standing on his backyard deck Thursday, April 24, the same place where he declared his 1996 candidacy for U.S. Senate, Illinois’ senior senator Dick Durbin reflected on his decision to retire after four decades in Congress. “I’ve done this my way, making decisions based on

Due process, immigration, Abrego Garcia case

By Saranac Hale SpencerFactCheck.org The Supreme Court ruled on the evening of April 10 that the Donald Trump Administration must comply with a lower court’s order to “facilitate” the release from custody of Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia, an immigrant who was deported without a hearing to a mega prison in

Reader’s Commentary: Biden broke immigration laws, Trump to right wrongs

By Bela “Bill” Suhayda Former president, Joe Biden, not only broke immigration laws and the U.S. Constitution, he chopped them up and burned them. Then he allowed an unprecedented 15 million unvetted, unvaccinated illegals into the country. Americans paying attention realized countries around the world had opened their prisons to

How a president becomes a dictator: By executive order

By John & Nisha Whitehead “We are fast approaching the stage of the ultimate inversion: the stage where the government is free to do anything it pleases.” — Ayn Rand One-hundred and thirty executive orders in under 100 days. Sweeping powers claimed in the name of “security” and “efficiency.” One

Pritzker balances messaging, some Dems want to avoid LGBTQ

By Ben SzalinskiCapitol News Illinoisbszalinski@capitolnewsillinois.com When governor JB Pritzker tells audiences how he became interested in politics, it often starts with stories about his mother. As a child growing up in the San Francisco Bay Area, Pritzker often shares, he’d attend marches, rallies and protests with his mother in support

Illinois’ AG needs more funds for suits against Trump administration

By Peter HancockCapitol News Illinoisphancock@capitolnewsillinois.com Illinois attorney general, Kwame Raoul, is asking State lawmakers for a $15 million increase in his General Revenue Fund budget for the upcoming year, saying his office needs a more “stable” system of funding as it takes on greater responsibilities, including the growing volume of

Reader’s Voice: Concern: Deportations and due process

April 20, 2025Dear editor; This concerns current deportations without due process. Regardless of how one feels toward documented or undocumented immigrants in this country, ideally, all persons on American soil are entitled by the U.S. Constitution to due process under the law. I say “ideally” because Black Americans have been

Mayor-elect of Aurora, John Laesch announces Transition Team

City of Aurora mayor-elect John Laesch recently announced the formation of his official Transition Team—a dynamic and diverse group of civic leaders, policy experts, organizers, and longtime public servants who will help shape the future of Aurora’s city government. Although the transition team includes three sitting Aldermen, Laesch will be

Refugee. Enemy of the State. Would ICE have crucified Jesus?

By John & Nisha Whitehead It has begun, just as we predicted, justified in the name of national security. Mass roundups. Raids. Indefinite detentions in concentration camps. Martial law. The erosion of habeas corpus protections. The suspension of the Constitution, at least for select segments of the population. A hierarchy

Homeschool bill stalls in Illinois House, but still alive

By Molly Parker and Beth HundsdorferCapitol News Illinoisnews@capitolnewsillinois.com The Homeschool Act (HB 2827), a bill that would tighten homeschooling regulations in Illinois missed a key deadline Friday, April 11. But its sponsor, representative Terra Costa Howard, said it’s still alive — and she’s working on changes recommended by fellow lawmakers