All the big Dems hitting Chicago

Shia Kapos' must-read rundown of political news in the Land of Lincoln

Sep 11, 2023 View in browser   By Shia Kapos Happy Monday, Illinois. We’re remembering the brave souls of 9/11 today. TOP TALKER Chicago's skyline seen from Soldier Field on Aug. 12, 2023. | AP Photo/Kamil Krzaczynski Vice President Kamala Harris is coming to Chicago again for a campaign event Wednesday. And Democrats from every state will be in town starting today to check out the hotels they’ll be staying at during the 2024 Democratic National Convention. Meeting the boss: The statewide leaders will also get to meet Minyon Moore, the presidential adviser who recently was named chair of the convention. Getting their bearings: This week’s visit will allow party leaders to get a feel for where they’re staying in relation to the United Center, where the convention will be broadcast across the country. And they’ll hold meetings at McCormick Place, where behind-the-scenes gatherings will also take place during the convention. The buzz among party insiders is that it will be a logistically easy convention to manage because all the hotels are within the city limits. We mentioned that here. Wining and dining: The Dems visiting this week will also dine at Bronzeville Winery and take part in a reception tomorrow evening that will showcase Chicago restaurants and vendors available for events during the convention. Making plans: The goal is to give them ideas on where they can hold their schmoozy parties when they’re in town next year. THE BUZZ MIGRANT MOVES: The ongoing arrival of asylum seekers is an issue that will hang over next year’s Democratic convention and this year’s city’s budget. It’s already becoming Mayor Brandon Johnson’s biggest challenge, mirroring the former Mayor Lori Lightfoot having to manage the pandemic. Johnson won’t call the issue a crisis, instead describing it as a “humanitarian effort.” He and Gov. JB Pritzker have called on the federal government to ramp up funding and to accelerate work permits and create housing to allow new arrivals to establish roots in the city. Here’s what’s happening this week. The 50 City Council members have been asked to identify an area within each of their wards that can accommodate a large tent complete with mess halls, cots and heating and cooling units. They’re going to be up for a while. Costs are still being examined: “It highlights how limited city governments are prepared for this scale and why we need more state and federal help,” Ald. Andre Vasquez, who heads the council’s immigrant rights committee, told Playbook. The challenges: Smaller wards or wards that are densely populated won't have the same space as those on the South and West sides, which are “historically marginalized,” Vasquez said. “That could lead to more division.” An important nuance: Aldermen want to make sure those who are already unhoused in the city have an opportunity to live in the tented areas Message to the mayor: The aldermen first learned of the tents in the Sun-Times, which prompted grumbling behind the scenes about the mayor not being transparent. Council members have asked Johnson to please let them know about policy moves before he talks to the media. The City Council meets on Wednesday, but the issue of migrants will only come up during Vasquez’s committee update. The committee will hold a hearing later this month about moving forward with the tents and to hear about mutual aid groups’ work on the ground. Not just a city issue: Asylum seekers are being sent to Chicago because it's a city that opens its arms to immigrants. The state of Illinois is also welcoming, so Chicago officials are hoping more communities outside of the city step up to help. RELATED Vasquez launches migrant data portal, improving transparency on care for new arrivals, by Block Club’s Alex V. Hernandez If you are Minyon Moore, Playbook would like to hear from you. Email skapos@politico.com WHERE'S JB No official public events. WHERE's BRANDON At Engine 42 at 7:35 a.m. for the Chicago Fire Department's 9/11 commemoration ceremony. Where's Toni At Provident Hospital at 1 p.m. for a panel discussion about racial equity and healthcare. Before you succumb to the Monday blues, send me a line: skapos@politico.com   GO INSIDE THE WORLD’S BIGGEST DIPLOMATIC PLATFORM WITH UNGA PLAYBOOK: The 78th Session of the United Nations General Assembly will jam some of the world's most influential leaders into four city blocks in Manhattan. POLITICO's special edition UNGA Playbook will take you inside this important gathering starting Sept. 17 — revealing newsy nuggets throughout the week and insights into the most pressing issues facing global decision-makers today. Sign up for UNGA Playbook.     2024 WATCH — ‘Black and brown tension’ evident in Democratic contest for Illinois Supreme Court seat: Justice Joy Cunningham, who has Democratic Party support, is gathering signatures to run for a full term and so is Appellate Judge Jesse Reyes. Cunningham is Black, and Reyes is Latino. Tribune’s Dan Petrella reports. — Linda Robertson, a microbiologist and St. Charles small-business owner, is running for the 65th state House District. She’s a Democrat. If she makes it through a primary it would be a rematch against current state Rep. Dan Ugaste, a Republican. — Dick Uihlein is co-hosting a fundraiser for Republican Frank LaRose, the Ohio secretary of state running for U.S. Senate. Details here THE STATEWIDES — Lured by $500M in state incentives, Chinese firm plans $2B electric vehicle battery plant in Manteno: The announcement represents another step in helping Democratic Gov. J.B. Pritzker bring more EV business to Illinois, by Tribune’s Jeremy Gorner. — Lincoln Library trustees defer on endorsing Gwendolyn Harrison for director, by State Journal-Register’s Zach Roth — Tribune series shines a light on Illinois’ Underground Railroad: The National Park Service Network to Freedom lists 25 Illinois sites and “even more communities can be identified as places with freedom seeker movement in northeastern Illinois,” write Tribune’s Darcel Rockett and Tina E. Akouris. Part 1: Descendants feel profound pride as they unearth connections, by Tribune’s Darcel Rockett CHICAGO — 33-year-old new Ed Board president praised for ‘thoughtful, insightful’ leadership, by Sun-Times’ Nader Issa — Bears’ search for new stadium continues as a new season begins — with roadblocks in all directions, by Tribune’s Robert McCoppin — Gamblers welcome Chicago’s first casino as Bally’s opens temporary site at Medinah Temple, by Tribune’s Robert Channick, Ilana Arougheti and Jake Sheridan — Firefighter gets $52K in back pay, retroactive promotion for test denied during military service, by Sun-Times’ Fran Spielman TRAINS, PLANES AND AUTOMOBILES — Proposed recommendations for the future of public transit are already being met with pushback: Business groups have are pushing back "on a concept to expand the sales tax base and questioning whether instead of seeking to enhance transit, the planners should focus instead on the reality of still-diminished ridership,” by Tribune’s Sarah Freishtat. — Red Line extension gets nearly $2B boost from feds, by Block Club’s Mack Liederman and Maxwell Evans. — Chicago area faces 30 percent transit cuts without new taxes, state aid, by Bloomberg’s Shruti Singh and Skylar Woodhouse COOK COUNTY AND COLLARS — 'A horrible hoax': School swatting takes phony threats to a new, emotional, costly level, by Daily Herald’s Alicia Fabbre — Oak Lawn library showcasing town’s musical roots, including Styx and REO Speedwagon, by Daily Southtown’s Paul Eisenberg TAKING NAMES — MK Pritzker, the first lady of Illinois, talks about the redecorated governor’s mansion, infused with Illinois-centric art. Sun-Times’ Michael Sneed reports. — Mayor Brandon Johnson and his sons hit the Bears game, via social media post. SPOTTED — Congresswoman Robin Kelly hosted her colleague, Congresswoman Nanette Barragán of California, chair of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, at NoMi on Friday for a meet-and-greet with local Latino leaders. Joining them: Clerk of the Cook County Courts, Iris Martinez, Faegre Drinker's Olivia Pantoja, Public Building Commission Executive Director Carina Sanchez, Metropolitan Family Services Executive Director Roxanne Nava, Benesch Law’s Juan Morado Jr. and Julian Grace Foundation’s Alice Morado, Hispanic Federation’s Roberto Valdez Jr., La Casa Norte CEO Jose M. Muñoz and PNC’s Dorothy Abreu. — State Rep. Ann Williams was grand marshal of the Von Steuben Day parade held Saturday in conjunction with Oktoberfest in Lincoln Square. State Treasurer Mike Frerichs, who speaks German, made an appearance with his wife and newborn twins. Also spotted: State Sens. Sara Feigenholtz and Mike Simmons, state Rep. Hoan Huynh, Cook County Treasurer Maria Pappas, Cook County Assessor Fritz Kaegi, Board of Review Commissioner Samantha Steele, Sheriff Tom Dart, Ald. Matt Martin and ward committeeman Paul Rosenfeld. — Chicago attorney Len Goodman held his annual summer bash Saturday, and his client, Rod Blagojevich, showed up. He joined Goodman’s band to sing “That’s All Right” and “Jailhouse Rock,” both Elvis Presley classics. Blagojevich also greeted catering staff of Inspiration Kitchen, which includes some staff that has been homeless or previously incarcerated. It’s something Blago knows something about. Pic! POT-POURRI — Former Ald. Helen Shiller’s granddaughter seeks OK to open weed shop in Westside Justice Center building: “A City Hall zoning hearing is set Tuesday for the store, called Baked,” by Sun-Times’ Frank Main.   Enter the “room where it happens”, where global power players shape policy and politics, with Power Play. POLITICO’s brand-new podcast will host conversations with the leaders and power players shaping the biggest ideas and driving the global conversations, moderated by award-winning journalist Anne McElvoy. Sign up today to be notified of the first episodes in September – click here.     Reader Digest We asked about your prized political pin. Stella Black: A Nancy Pelosi pin when she became House speaker. Randy Bukas: A McGovern-Eagleton pin from 1972. Rosemary Caruk: “A McGovern pin I got when I was in sixth grade." John Fritchey: A 1920 Harding/Coolidge pin and a 1930 pin for Chicago Mayor Anton Cermak, who was assassinated. Kay Hatcher: A Jim Edgar for governor pin. Pic! Bill Hogan: A Jack Kemp “Youth for Kemp" pin. Carol Hughes: A Dawn Clark Netsch “straight shooter” pool cue pin. Pic! Jo Johnson: A Truman button. Kelly Kleiman: A 2008 Obama button with a slogan: “Bin Laden Still Has a Job — Do You?” Ed Mazur: A 1932 Henry Horner for governor pin that said “Mazel Tov.” Mark Michaels: A “They Can’t Lick Our Dick” button supporting Richard Nixon. Pic! Joan Pederson: Blue Harold Washington for mayor pin. Jane Ruby: A “New York City Needs Bella Abzug” for mayor pin. Timothy Thomas Jr.: A pin from Harold Washington’s mayoral campaign — and another from Thomas' wife, former Ald. Latasha Thomas’ campaign for City Council. Pic! Claud Walker: Harold Washington's 1983 “Blue Sunrise” pin. Has your view of political polling changed? Email skapos@politico.com THE NATIONAL TAKE — Duckworth slams cartoon mocking senators as disabled and aged, by Sun-Times’ Lynn Sweet — McCarthy faces biggest threat yet to his survival, by POLITICO’s Sarah Ferris, Jordain Carney and Olivia Beavers — Redistricting could help Democrats win back the House, by POLITICO’s Zach Montellaro and Ally Mutnick — Trump, the ultimate attention seeker, wages a campaign largely out of public view, by POLITICO’s Meridith McGraw — A breathtaking contempt for the people of Wisconsin, by The New York Times’ Jamelle Bouie IN MEMORIAM — Former state Rep. Bill Black has died. He was 81, by Vermilion County First’s Bill Pickett TRANSITIONS — Grace Hou has been named deputy governor for Health and Human Services. She has been secretary of Illinois Department of Human Services. Hou replaces Sol Flores, who has been deputy governor since January 2019. — Michael Word has joined Dykema’s Chicago office as partner in the firm's IP practice group. He had been at Mayer Brown for 15 years. EVENTS — Today: Rep. Mike Coffey and Springfield Mayor Misty Buscher hold a fundraiser together. Details and more GOP events here — Thursday: Comptroller Susana Mendoza headlines an Executives Club discussion on “Positioning Illinois to be Competitive in Emerging Industries.” Joining her: U. of I. Dean Rashid Bashir, LanzaJet CEO Jimmy Samartzis and P33 CEO Brad Henderson. Details here TRIVIA FRIDAY’s ANSWER: Congrats to Patrick Cortesi, chair of the McLean County Democrats, for correctly answering that Roy A. Overholt Little League Tournament in Brookfield is the longest-running Little League baseball tournament after the Little League World Series. TODAY’s QUESTION: Who was the first female senator in the Illinois General Assembly to call Bloomington’s Franklin Square neighborhood home? Email skapos@politico.com HAPPY BIRTHDAY POLITICO Executive Editor Joe Schatz, former state Rep. Yehiel Mark Kalish, former Illinois House aide Dimietha “Dee” Sangster, Chicago comic Tom Dreesen and Paramount Events founder Jodi Fyfe. -30-   Follow us on Twitter Shia Kapos @shiakapos   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

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