Free Republic

Olivia Olander reported for the Chicago Tribune on November 3 that Illinois Governor JB Pritzker has not yet decided if he will sign or veto the recently passed assisted suicide bill. Olander reported: Democratic Gov. JB Pritzker on Monday said he was still deciding whether he’d sign legislation that would permit doctors to help terminally ill people end their lives, after the bill narrowly passed the General Assembly last week. “It was something that I didn’t expect and didn’t know it was going to be voted on, so we’re examining it even now,” Pritzker said. We need everyone to call...

Democratic Gov. JB Pritzker on Monday said he was still deciding whether he’d sign legislation that would permit doctors to help terminally ill people end their lives, after the bill narrowly passed the General Assembly last week. “It was something that I didn’t expect and didn’t know it was going to be voted on, so we’re examining it even now,” Pritzker said. The Democratic-run state Senate, before dawn broke Friday, voted with the bare minimum 30 votes to allow mentally competent, terminally ill adults the right to access life-ending prescription medication with physician oversight. The vote sent the bill to...

According to the Inspector General Report, several memos were shared with the Columbia Law Professor Daniel Richman. Richman is expected to be a central witness in the pending federal prosecution against Comey in Virginia for allegedly lying about his role in media leaks. The Inspector General also found attorney Patrick Fitzgerald received multiple Comey memos about the Trump meetings, including at least one memo containing classified information. Fitzgerald is now representing Comey in the Virginia case. Question: Is there a conflict, or the appearance of a conflict? Does it cross any legal or ethical red lines? Richman has not responded...

Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker (D), a fierce defender of sanctuary policies, is getting called out as an illegal alien is accused of killing a local elected Republican official and his wife last week. A 34-year-old illegal alien Edwin Pacheco-Meza of Honduras was driving a van on Oct. 24 when he crossed the center lane and struck 71-year-old Michael Clayton and his wife — killing them instantly. Clayton was a Republican who served on the Coles County Board. Pacheco-Meza, who crossed the southern border as an unknown got-away, was in his vehicle with illegal Juan Morales-Martinez of Guatemala, who crossed the...

Gov. JB Pritzker told President Donald Trump and his Republican allies to “f--- right off” during a speech last month before Illinois’ largest teachers union. Video of Pritzker’s F-bomb started gaining traction on social media Sunday, two weeks after the Democratic governor and potential 2028 presidential contender got a standing ovation for his profane takedown of Trump administration education policies. “President Trump and his bootlickers have torn down the U.S. Dept. of Education from the inside. Instead of helping to improve math and reading scores like you all are doing and supporting our educators, they’re making it harder for students...

Federal officials have charged a Chicago woman with laundering large volumes of suspected narcotics proceeds after a months-long investigation linked her to cash exchanges tied to Mexican drug cartels and Chinese cryptocurrency networks, according to a recently unsealed federal complaint. Homeland Security Investigations arrested Xiao Mei of Canaryville on allegations that she coordinated a series of large cash exchanges in Chinatown and River North between February and July 2024. Prosecutors said Mei, described as a Chicago-based broker for a Chinese money-laundering network, regularly used WeChat to arrange pickups of bulk U.S. currency from associates of drug traffickers and transferred equivalent...

CARLYLE, Ill. -- When Jose Jeronimo Guardian showed up at a Spanish language traffic court this week, he didn't expect to be detained and face expulsion from a country he'd lived in for more than two decades. Guardian, 48, was scheduled to appear Monday in a courtroom where a county-provided translator would aid communication with about a dozen Spanish-speaking defendants who face charges from traffic infractions like his - two charges of driving under the influence of alcohol - to serious felony charges. Guardian never made it into the courtroom. Instead, an agent from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement questioned...

His name is Derek Lopez and he's a 27-year-old teaching assistant at Illinois State University. Ten days ago we had him in our headlines after he was arrested for making an ass of himself by flipping a TPUSA table on campus.WATCH: A teacher assistant at Illinois State University flipped over a @tpusastudents table and tore down flyers promoting an upcoming @alexstein99 event.🎥 @jessburback @tpusastudents pic.twitter.com/ydhIfcEa24— FRONTLINES TPUSA (@FrontlinesTPUSA) October 17, 2025The university indicated he had actually done this twice, but it was only caught on video once. He was arrested for disorderly conduct and damage to propery.On October 17, 2025,...

In the sanctuary state of Illinois, where Gov. J.B. Pritzker (D) has attempted to impede federal immigration enforcement, an illegal alien is accused of killing a Republican elected official and his wife in Coles County. Police say that 34-year-old illegal alien Edwin Pacheco-Meza of Honduras was driving a van on Oct. 24 when he crossed the center lane and struck 71-year-old Michael Clayton and his wife, 66-year-old Gail Clayton — killing them instantly. Michael Clayton was a Republican elected official who served on the Coles County Board. Pacheco-Meza, who crossed the southern border as an unknown got-away, was in his...

An Illinois jury on Wednesday convicted a former sheriff’s deputy of second-degree murder in the shooting death of Sonya Massey, a Black woman who called 911 asking for help. Sean Grayson, 31, could be sentenced to up to 20 years in prison, or probation. Sentencing is scheduled for Jan. 29. Grayson and another deputy arrived at Massey’s home in Springfield, Illinois, early on the morning of July 6, 2024, after she reported a prowler. Grayson shot the 36-year-old woman after confronting her about how she was handling a pot of hot water she had removed from her stove. Grayson and...

As the climate changes, Chicago and the Great Lakes are sometimes referred to as a "climate haven," an area that will be sheltered from some of the worst impacts. Far from Gulf Coast hurricanes and California wildfires, Chicagoland seems like a safe place to be in a warming world. But is it? "There's really no place in the world that is truly a climate haven. It's more a matter of picking your poison," said climate researcher Dr. Kirstina Dahl. "My top concerns would probably be increased flood risk." Heavy rain is now 10% heavier than it was in 1970. Just...

A progressive Democratic candidate may be headed to the slammer before she even gets a chance at going to Congress.Kat Abughazaleh, a former Media Matters journalist running to represent Illinois’ 9th District in the House of Representatives, was charged by the Department of Justice for allegedly assaulting an ICE officer.She is charged with two counts of conspiracy to impede or injure an ICE officer, along with assaulting or impeding that officer while he was on duty.The indictment, which was filed on October 23, accuses Abughazaleh, as well as five others, of attacking an ICE agent’s vehicle by banging aggressive on...

An appeals court has temporarily paused a federal judge's order requiring U.S. Customs and Border Patrol commander-at-large Greg Bovino to appear in court daily and give updates on immigration enforcement activity in Chicago under the Trump administration's "Operation Midway Blitz." The Department of Justice on Wednesday appealed U.S. District Court Judge Sara Ellis' order, which mandated Bovino check in with her at 6 p.m. daily to ensure compliance with a temporary restraining order that restricted federal agents' use of force in crowd-control tactics.

U.S. Border Patrol chief Gregory Bovino, who appeared in federal court on Tuesday sporting his trademark dark green uniform and crew cut, seems likely to become a regular presence there. U.S. District Court judge Sara Ellis ordered Bovino, the Border Patrol sector chief overseeing the agency’s operations in Chicago and previously in Los Angeles, to appear in federal court each weekday at 6 p.m. to report on daily immigration operations. She also ordered that he turn over all agents’ use of force reports from Sept. 2 through Oct. 25, as well as the bodycam footage corresponding to those reports, by...

Among political conservatives, there is no hotter potato at the moment than the civil liability protections afforded by Section 230 to online operators. Unless Republicans learn to love it again and reject the censorship lawfare complex favored by Democrats, they risk dooming our tech leaders and everyone who uses their products to the sharks circling our legal system.The twenty-six words tucked into the Communications Decency Act of 1996 shielded publishers from liability so they could host and moderate content and still allow a wide range of speech without fear of lawsuits. Since then, Section 230 has evolved to be one...

In a reckless and malicious move that’s drawing fire from conservatives, Illinois State Representative Margaret Croke sent out an email on Friday listing detailed descriptions of vehicles suspected to belong to ICE agents operating in Chicago neighborhoods. The flyer, titled “Updated List of ICE Vehicles Seen Today,” includes make, model, color, and partial license plate info for cars believed to belong to agents working in the area. Croke urged recipients to report suspicious activity to hotlines, claiming that ICE actions are “unlawful and undemocratic” and offering resources to connect illegal aliens with attorneys or social services. Conservatives, including the popular...

The property manager of a troubled South Shore apartment building raided last month by immigration agents helps run a political fund that made campaign contributions to more than a dozen members of the Chicago City Council this year. The recipients include now-former Ald. Walter Burnett (27th), Mayor Brandon Johnson’s choice to run the Chicago Housing Authority. One of Burnett’s campaign funds accepted a $500 contribution this year from the Neighborhood Building Owners Alliance PAC. The political action committee’s leaders include Corey Oliver of Strength in Management LLC, which oversees the complex at 7500 S. South Shore Drive that was targeted...

“Follow the money trail” was a comment made on an October 12, 2025 article describing Chicago politics as a gangster movie rerun. Well, both Jesse Watters of Fox News and the Chicago Sun-Times decided to “follow the money trail” for Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker, now that he is standing in the way of arresting criminals and blocking President Trump’s heroic attempt to shut down crime in Chicago. Jesse Watters reported that Pritzker made over a million dollars playing blackjack in 2024 while staying in Sin City Las Vegas. Senior National Correspondent Kevin Corke stated Pritzker made “$1.425 million bucks in...

A federal judge in Chicago just made a decision that’s raising eyebrows — and not just among immigration officers.In a move that’s already stirring debate nationwide, U.S. District Judge Jeffrey Cummings ruled that ICE agents — yes, federal officers — can be arrested if they take migrants into custody at Cook County courthouses without a proper warrant. Let that sink in for a second. (snip) So, who’s actually in charge here — federal law enforcement… or local judges?And if ICE agents can be arrested for doing their jobs, what kind of message does that send to those who aren’t even...

As Republicans across the country pursue new congressional maps to boost their party ahead of next year's midterm elections, Democrats are ramping up pressure on states where they can respond. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., has held discussions with members of the Maryland delegation and Democratic Gov. Wes Moore in recent weeks about possible mid-decade redistricting efforts, according to a source with knowledge of the conversations. The source also said Jeffries spoke with members of the Illinois delegation about drawing new district lines, as Politico first reported. Maryland has just one Republican, Rep. Andy Harris, in its eight-member House...