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CHICAGO, Ill. (WTVO) — Former Illinois Governor Jim Edgar said he’ll be voting for Democrat Joe Biden during an interview this week, breaking ranks with President Donald Trump. Edgar, former U.S. Rep. Ray LaHood, and ex-Illinois Republican Party chair Pat Brady said they would be voting for Biden the week of the Republican National Convention. “He’s been more of a disappointment than I thought he’d be,” Edgar said in an interview with WBEZ. “I think he bungled the pandemic thing. He undercuts our allies. I don’t understand his relationship with [Russian President Vladmir] Putin. The list goes on and on....

Wall Street’s top regulator faced questions on Thursday about its defenses against cyber criminals after admitting hackers breached its electronic database of corporate announcements and may have used it for insider trading. The incursion at the Securities and Exchange Commission struck at the heart of the U.S. financial system. The SEC’s EDGAR filing system is the central repository for market-moving information on corporate America with millions of filings ranging from quarterly earnings to statements on acquisitions. Accessing documents before they are released publicly would offer hackers a lucrative opportunity to trade on that information. The SEC has said it was...

A DEA agent has died in an apparent robbery attempt in Colombia, U.S. Ambassador Michael McKinley said Friday. Colombian authorities said the American agent was stabbed four times.

SNIPPET: "Actually, two have been convicted by a jury for using their nightclubs to launder the proceeds of drug and weapons deals, one was acquitted of money laundering but has pled guilty to a drug trafficking charge, and one of those convicted of money laundering has now been charged with tax evasion. And that's not to mention the failure to pay state liquor taxes and fees, the unsolved murder of a one-time business partner, and various immigration-related issues. Money was transferred in to a relative and known Hizballah operative in Lebanon, and there are strong ties to the Lebanese expat...

Cook County Board President-elect Toni Preckwinkle has announced a bipartisan transition team full of heavyweights from politics, the business community and civic organizations. Among those appointed are former Gov. Jim Edgar, one of the state’s most respected Republicans, and former Comptroller Dawn Clark Netsch, a well-respected Democrat who lost to Edgar for governor in 1994...

The head of what used to be the main voice of ecumenical Christianity in America has made Fox News the target of his latest jeremiad. Bob Edgar, former Democratic congressman and former seminary president is now an ordained Methodist minister and general secretary of the National Council of Churches (NCC) -- but his religion is often politics by another means. Edgar warned a gathering of "moderate" Baptists last month against the challenges of "fear, fundamentalism, and Fox News." instead urging his faithful to "walk in the footsteps of Jesus." Edgar cited the supposed threat posed by Fox News while speaking...

IT MIGHT BE no accident that the national decline in church attendance has mirrored the rise of activism by church leadership. One religious group famous for its social agenda is the National Council of Churches. Although supposedly a nonpartisan organization, for the past 40 years the NCC's politics has usually sat on the far left of the political spectrum. Since Rev. Bob Edgar took over as the NCC's general secretary in 2000, the group hasn't jettisoned its liberal ways. What is Edgar's record? For starters, he's carried on the NCC's ongoing love affair with Cuba. One of his first acts...

Blogs4Bauer has launched. The site kicked off 24 days prior to season 5 of 24 premier (which is 2 days, 4 hours long). We are looking for contributors, check it out.

'There's a space for everyone at the table' at Louisville festival By Frank E. Lockwood HERALD-LEADER STAFF WRITER Former U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara and National Council of Churches general secretary Bob Edgar are among those coming to Louisville for its 10th annual Festival of Faiths. The eight-day festival, which unites people of all faiths, includes about a dozen events, including a community thanksgiving service and a session on "Faith and Cooperation in a Nuclear Age" with McNamara, Edgar and arms control expert Thomas Graham Jr. Artists, musicians and academics also participate in the activities. Sacred songs and scriptures...

CHICAGO (CBS 2) CBS 2 News has learned that former Illinois governor Jim Edgar is being urged to consider a run for his old office. The pleas are coming from here in Illinois, as well as from Washington. He served two terms as governor; leaving Illinois in solid financial shape when he stepped down in 1999. He retired after 30 years in state politics, to the life of a college lecturer, corporate director and consultant. But he is now, for the third time in two years, being urged to get back into politics. Republican State Chairman Andy McKenna, Jr. said,...

While families from across the state converged on the Illinois State Fair for a day of fun in the sun, leaders of the Illinois Republican Party met at a couple of downtown hotels. Today’s Republican events began at 9:30am at the Renaissance Hotel with a meeting of the County Chairmen's Association. The Illinois Leader was on hand and provided the following report. The meeting began at approximately 9:30am with close to 60 county chairmen in attendance. Jim Edgar, Victory 2004 Campaign Chairman, addressed the group and encouraged them to support President George W Bush in spite of any disagreements they...

Hinsdale legislator may face ObamaDuPage chairman considers GOP bid By Rick Pearson Tribune political reporter Published July 19, 2004 State Sen. Kirk Dillard (R-Hinsdale) said Sunday that he is "warming" to a bid to replace Jack Ryan as the state's Republican U.S. Senate nominee and has received the encouragement of his ex-boss, former two-term Gov. Jim Edgar, for making such a run. Edgar "gave me a lot of ideas," Dillard said. "He convinced me that someone with my type of profile and experience, and especially with my uniqueness in the way that I line up against my friend and colleague,...

Statement by Bush-Cheney ’04 Illinois Campaign Chairman Former Gov. Jim Edgar (R-IL) Regarding John Kerry's Negative Attacks(title edited for length)WASHINGTON, DC— Former Gov. Jim Edgar (R-IL), Bush-Cheney ’04 Illinois Campaign Chairman, issued the following statement regarding education: “Instead of his predictable negative attacks, John Kerry should be praising President Bush for making college more affordable for low-income students in Illinois. Thankfully, President Bush has eased the pain for millions of low-income and middle-class students in Illinois and throughout the nation by increasing Pell Grant funding by 47 percent to a record $12.9 billion, decreasing out-of-pocket expenses students would otherwise have...

Illinois Senate: Obama 54% Ryan 30% June 25, 2004--In the race to fill a U.S. Senate seat for Illinois, Democrat Barack Obama leads Republican Jack Ryan 54% to 30%. The survey was conducted for the Daily Southtown. Ryan has been dealing with the fallout from release of his divorce files in recent days. Many people believe he will withdraw from the race. The Daily Southtown quoted Scott Rasmussen as saying Ryan "can lose or withdraw. He's not going to the Senate." Our previous survey found a much more competitive race (Obama 48% Ryan 40%). Since that time, Ryan's ratings have...

Chicago and Springfield, IL - Today, Speaker and U.S. Rep. J. Dennis Hastert (R-IL) and former Illinois Gov. Jim Edgar joined Bush-Cheney '04 Campaign Chairman Gov. Marc Racicot and Bush-Cheney '04 Regional Chairman Bob Kjellander to announce the Bush-Cheney '04 Illinois Campaign Leadership Team at media availabilities in Chicago and Springfield. The Bush-Cheney '04 Illinois Campaign Leadership Team will help build a network of grassroots support and serve as messengers for the President's re-election campaign. "The Illinois statewide leadership team is made up of a diverse group of men and women with a great respect for both President Bush's optimistic...

Two years after a successful effort to round up winning candidates for last year's Senate elections, Republicans are running into some obstacles in recruting for 2004: a lack of strong contenders in several key states, and too many aspirants in others. The good news for Republicans is that Democrats appear to have even more acute problems, including the likely retirement of Democratic incumbents in several tossup or GOP-leaning Southern states in addition to recruiting difficulties. Largely because of these opportunities in these open races, Republicans are the early favorites to retain or expand their current 51 to 49 majority in...

The Chicago Tribune is reporting this morning that former Gov. Jim Edgar will not run for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Sen. Peter Fitzgerald. Tribune Political Editor Rick Pearson says Edgar is telling close associates he will announce his decision later today. Edgar, a Downstate Republican, is saying the timing is not right in his life to make the run. Edgar's decision follows a telephone call placed last month to the former governor by President Bush, urging him to run for Senate next year after Fitzgerald's surprise announcement that he would not seek re-election. Officials of the National...

Before Sen. Peter Fitzgerald (R-Ill.) announced last month that he won't seek a second term next year, Democratic hopes of winning the seat were muted by political reality. True, Fitzgerald was regarded as a budget hawk and an iconoclast on the outs with state Republicans. Also, national Democrats were saying they were determined to win Illinois, along with Alaska, in 2004. But the undeniable fact was that Fitzgerald was an incumbent and the White House and the National Republican Senatorial Committee were determined to do everything possible to keep Fitzgerald's seat and hold on to their slim margin in the...