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An inside look at the politics practiced from Chicago's City Hall to
the Statehouse in Springfield, from Chicago Tribune reporters.
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the Statehouse in Springfield, from Chicago Tribune reporters.
Twitter | RSS | Older posts
Felons found with guns now face automatic jail time
Convicted felons found illegally carrying guns will now face automatic jail time under a measure Gov. Pat Quinn signed into law today.
Get the full story >>New soccer goal law has a big loophole
Gov. Pat Quinn signed a measure into law today aimed at ensuring schools, park districts and other organizations that use soccer goals...
Get the full story >>3 of 4 candidates to head CHA from outside Chicago
Mayor Rahm Emanuel is considering four people to lead the Chicago Housing Authority as he looks to fill a vacancy created after the agency&...
Get the full story >>Quinn dons Packers jersey in settling Super Bowl bet
KENOSHA-- Gov. Pat Quinn traveled to a Wisconsin food bank Tuesday to hold up his end of a losing bet that the Bears would defeat the...
Get the full story >>State staff recommends 'no' on latest Oak Forest Hospital plan
Cook County’s bid to transform Oak Forest Hospital into a regional outpatient clinic should be denied, according to a staff report...
Get the full story >>Obama to head home for 50th birthday fundraiser
The sound of helicopters over the Chicago lakefront today signaled the practice drills that accompany a presidential visit. And with...
Get the full story >>Quinn signs Illinois DREAM Act
Gov. Pat Quinn today signed a measure into law creating a privately-funded scholarship program for documented and undocumented immigrants, a...
Get the full story >>Emanuel vows no tax hikes to bridge $635.7 million budget gap
Mayor Rahm Emanuel today said next year's city budget hole is nearly $636 million and he won't use one-time fixes or reserves to fix it.
Get the full story >>Quinn won't say if he supports major toll increase
Democratic Gov. Pat Quinn isn't taking a position yet on his tollway board's idea to nearly double tolls to pay for new roads and road work.
Get the full story >>City dedicates library to former Mayor Daley
Chicago officials on Thursday continued the time-honored tradition of imprinting the city’s public buildings with the names of...
Get the full story >>Illinois license plates could get ads
The Illinois Secretary of State’s office will study the possibility of placing corporate logos on license plates under a measure Gov....
Get the full story >>Emanuel, aldermen send message to Chicago coal-fired power plants
The company that owns two pollution-spewing coal-fired power plants targeted by environmental activists could be forced to talk clean-up...
Get the full story >>Alderman wants changes to police board
Chicago Ald. Bob Fioretti today introduced an ordinance that would require the largely secretive work of the Police Board to be more open.
Get the full story >>New curfew for Chicago children under 12
The Chicago City Council today approved without debate an earlier curfew for children younger than 12.
Get the full story >>Quinn defends appointing Burkes' daughter to $117,000-a-year state post
Democratic Gov. Pat Quinn today said politics were “absolutely not” involved in his decision to give a high paying appointment...
Get the full story >>O'Hare concessions deal sails through City Council
Mayor Rahm Emanuel won approval today of a 25-year deal that will replace a clout-heavy concession operator at O’Hare Airport’...
Get the full story >>Emanuel ethics reforms back on track at City Council
Mayor Rahm Emanuel's plan to tighten lobbying rules passed the Chicago City Council today after some slight modifications.
Get the full story >>Preckwinkle orders 5 percent spending cut
Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle today ordered a 5 percent spending reduction for the rest of this year as she tries to get a...
Get the full story >>Quinn appoints Burkes' daughter to $117,000-a-year post
Democratic Gov. Pat Quinn on Wednesday gave a highly paid position to the daughter of the Illinois Supreme Court justice who swore him...
Get the full story >>Chicago Bear among picks for library board
Mayor Rahm Emanuel has named Chicago Bears defensive end Israel Idonije to the Chicago Public Library Board of Directors, part of the latest...
Get the full story >>Emanuel ethics reform stalls in City Council over non-profits
Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s effort to tighten the city’s lobbying rules stalled Wednesday after aldermen suggested it could stifle...
Get the full story >>State Sen. Susan Garrett won't run for re-election
Democratic State Sen. Susan Garrett announced today that she will not seek another term in office, saying she’s had a fulfilling...
Get the full story >>Preckwinkle says county layoffs 'inevitable'
Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle today said that layoffs are expected to be part of the preliminary budget she's scheduled to...
Get the full story >>Preckwinkle asks McCarthy to stop arresting low-level drug offenders
Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle said today that she’s asked Chicago Police Superintendent Garry McCarthy to consider...
Get the full story >>Emanuel, McCarthy like earlier curfew
Mayor Rahm Emanuel and Police Superintendent Garry McCarthy voiced their support for a curfew ordinance that will be considered by the...
Get the full story >>Quinn signs chemotherapy insurance measure into law
Gov. Pat Quinn today signed a measure into law aimed at protecting cancer patients from paying more money if they take oral chemotherapy...
Get the full story >>$6.5 million for unmarked car accident that killed Chicago boy, injured girl
The City Council Finance Committee today approved paying $6.5 million to settle a lawsuit stemming from the death of an 8-year-old boy and...
Get the full story >>50 Chicago cops to be deployed to rail, bus stations
Mayor Rahm Emanuel plans to hire 50 full-time police officers to patrol rail and bus stations around the city.
Get the full story >>Republicans sue over Illinois congressional districts
Republican congressmen and a GOP-backed group filed a federal lawsuit today challenging the redrawing of the state’s congressional...
Get the full story >>Quinn to settle Bears-Packers bet at Wisconsin food pantry
Democratic Gov. Pat Quinn will head north next weekend to settle a losing bet that the Bears would defeat the Green Bay Packers in January&...
Get the full story >>Quinn wants unions back at table on McCormick Place changes
Gov. Pat Quinn today tried to pressure McCormick Place union leaders back to the negotiating table to consider work-rule changes, saying he'...
Get the full story >>Anti-gambling group urges Quinn to veto casino expansion
Gambling opponents today called for Illinois to ban casino interests from making political campaign contributions and for Gov. Pat Quinn...
Get the full story >>Unions say Emanuel should cut patronage, improve efficiency to save money
City Hall labor unions today released a report that says Mayor Rahm Emanuel could save more than $242 million if he cut middle management,...
Get the full story >>Quinn signed state budget to avoid deeper cuts by Republicans
Democratic Gov. Pat Quinn said Monday that he signed off on a budget that he knew fell short of funding state government for a full year...
Get the full story >>Durbin: GOP 'irresponsible' on debt ceiling debate
The No. 2 Democrat in the U.S. Senate, Illinois’ Dick Durbin, today called Republicans "irresponsible" and "hypocritical" for their...
Get the full story >>City Hall could penalize businesses on lead emissions
A City Council committee today endorsed an ordinance that could push three industrial operations to speed up their compliance with federal...
Get the full story >>Quinn pardons 50 for past crimes
Rosa Young-Bey Williams said she had been praying for what happened Friday, the day Gov. Pat Quinn made her one of 50 people getting pardons...
Get the full story >>Pay raises for state workers still on hold
An arbitrator's ruling that Gov. Pat Quinn must dole out pay raises to 30,000 state workers was put on hold Friday.
Get the full story >>New Illinois law makes 'bath salts' drug illegal
Gov. Pat Quinn used his auto pen to sign a measure into law today that bans synthetic drugs marketed as bath salts, a move that follows...
Get the full story >>Daley's former press secretary joins him at law firm
Former Mayor Richard Daley’s longtime press secretary has taken a job with the same international law firm that Daley joined last...
Get the full story >>Aldermen back Emanuel's pick for O'Hare concession contract
The protracted, clout-heavy fight over a multi-million dollar contract to run the restaurants and stores in O’Hare airport’s...
Get the full story >>Chicago aldermen want tighter curfew for kids under 12
Chicago children younger than 12 would have to be inside by 8:30 p.m. Sunday through Thursday under a new curfew proposal endorsed today...
Get the full story >>Durbin: Group's defict reduction plan not part of debt-ceiling talks
The No. 2 Democrat in the U.S. Senate, Illinois’ Dick Durbin, said today it’s unlikely that “any aspect” of deficit-...
Get the full story >>Unpaid days off could cost city $7.5 million in overtime
Deferred overtime payments will end up costing the city more than $7.5 million in the next three years, according to the latest report by...
Get the full story >>Emanuel sends letter to city workers explaining layoffs
Mayor Rahm Emanuel today sent a letter to city employees explaining why he’s decided 625 of them need to be laid off.
Get the full story >>Illinois Republicans sue over Democrat-drawn remap
The state’s top Republican legislative leaders today led the filing of a federal lawsuit challenging a Democratic-drawn remapping of...
Get the full story >>Cook County Jail inmates could clean cages at city pound
Non-violent Cook County Jail inmates would clean cages at the city's South Side animal care center under a plan a key City Council panel...
Get the full story >>Emanuel wants consultant to make trash collection more efficient
Mayor Rahm Emanuel is looking to hire a private consultant to study how garbage is collected to help Chicago switch from its time-honored...
Get the full story >>Inspector general clashes with Emanuel officials on contracting ban
Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s administration has refused to bar from city business a former top City Hall aide who admitted taking part in an...
Get the full story >>Feds say no to Quinn on tightening Medicaid proof
Illinois wanted to tighten up the way it reviews whether people are eligible for Medicaid coverage, but the Obama administration has refused...
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Clout has a special meaning in Chicago, where it can be a noun, a verb or an adjective. This exercise of political influence in a uniquely Chicago style was chronicled in the Tribune cartoon "Clout Street" in the early 1980s. Clout Street, the blog, offers an inside look at the politics practiced from Chicago's City Hall to the Statehouse in Springfield, through the eyes of the Tribune's political and government reporters.