Free Republic

(The Center Square) – One of several examples the U.S. Department of Justice gave of how federal officials have been obstructed by Illinois’ migrant sanctuary policies involves an illegal alien released from jail later being accused of murder. “In January 2025, federal officials issued a detainer request for an alien who was being held in Cook County jail on sexual assault of a minor charges,” the DOJ said. “Pursuant to Cook County’s restrictions, law enforcement officers did not respond to the detainer request … Following the alien’s release from local jail, he was arrested and charged with homicide just 17...

Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker has ordered state agencies to review and potentially boycott business with El Salvador due to its role in detaining Kilmar Abrego Garcia. A statement from the Democrat indicates he believes this is a strong stance in support of due process for an alleged MS-13 member and suspected human trafficker. “The United States Constitution guarantees due process. We are witnessing Donald Trump erode our fundamental Constitutional rights in real time, and we must fight to restore the balance of power,” Pritzker said. “The State of Illinois will stand up for the Rule of Law and do everything...

The Illinois High School Association (IHSA) says it will continue to ignore a federal directive barring the participation of biological male athletes in high school girls’ sports. Previously, the State of Maine announced it would not comply with the directive, issued as an Executive Order by President Donald J. Trump in February, and now faces a federal lawsuit filed by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ). ISHA’s president, Dan Tully, claims that state law preempts the federal restriction and requires Illinois high schools to accommodate so-called transgender athletes, who are biological males, by allowing their participation in girls’ sporting events....

By taking himself out of the running for a third term as governor next year, Pritzker could position himself as a leader with big ideas rather than an official forced to explain why Illinois keeps losing taxpayers and businesses. "He’s a bold presence in a party that often seems hesitant to wield power as aggressively as the GOP. But his record in Illinois is also a liability. If he runs again, he’ll be forced to defend an ugly reality: Illinois remains a state with some of the highest taxes in the country, a poor business climate, anemic job creation and...

Zeynep Tufekci and Jeremy Howard played a decisive role in shifting CDC guidance and ushering in mask mandates across America. Zeynep’s role in the COVID story goes far deeper than most realize. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zeynep_Tufekci But alas, the pro-mask establishment responded with a trump card of their own: a New York Times op-ed by sociologist Zeynep Tufekci, Here’s Why the Science Is Clear That Masks Work, highlighting a statement of clarification from Cochrane’s editor-in-chief, Karla Soares-Weiser, that the review’s conclusion had been “open to misinterpretation, for which we apologize.” This new trump card was a disaster for mask opponents—the proverbial queen of...

In a startling revelation, Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker has been implicated in a colossal USAID fraud scheme that has garnered significant attention and raised serious concerns among taxpayers. According to a tweet by Mila Joy, which has gone viral, Pritzker’s family controls 64 non-governmental organizations (NGOs) that are allegedly siphoning millions of taxpayer dollars. This situation has ignited discussions surrounding political corruption, accountability, and the role of NGOs in government fundin

As thousands of life-advocates gathered at the Illinois State Capitol on March 25, in Springfield, members of the legislature were there to welcome them. Representative Adam Niemerg (R-Dieterich) and former State Representative Jeanne Ives were among those who spoke passionately to the burgeoning crowd at the Illinois Pro-Life March, criticizing Illinois’ extreme abortion policies and the governor’s disconnect with reason. Ives, encouraging the crowd, pointed out that, “To be actively pro-life in Illinois is more significant than in our neighboring states, because.” She criticized Illinois’ incentives designed to draw abortionists into the state and the expanding mandates forcing taxpayers to...

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WTVO) — A new bill under consideration in the Illinois House would allow individual municipalities to impose their own, local motor fuel tax on top of the state’s gas tax. House Bill 1283 would create the Municipal Motor Fuel Tax Law, allowing cities, towns and villages to impose their own gas tax, at a rate not to exceed 3 cents per gallon. The bill was introduced by Rep. Anthony DeLuca (D-80th). Illinois residents currently pay the second-highest gas tax in the country besides California, at 66 cents per gallon.

On Friday’s broadcast of ABC’s “The View,” Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker (D) said that Democrats shouldn’t “change the fundamental policies of the Democratic Party to move to the right to try to address” their problems with working-class voters because “The problem in the last election was messaging.” Co-host Ariana DeBose asked, “[W]orking-class voters have historically been a Democratic stronghold, until the last election, when either they voted for MAGA or they stayed home. Trump dominated issues on, like, trade, immigration, no taxes on tips, that sort of a thing. Do you think that Democrats have lost touch with the working-class...

On Wednesday’s broadcast of MSNBC’s “Deadline: White House,” Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker (D) argued that “the prices at the grocery store are going up because democracy is being taken away.” And “The impact on you in terms of your health care, 770,000 people in Illinois will lose health care as a result of what Donald Trump and Elon Musk and the Republican Congress are doing right now, it’s a danger to your way of life, and that’s what people need to understand.” Pritzker said, “When you lose, as is happening in my state –we’re losing our meat and poultry inspectors....

The Democrat dubbed “America’s worst mayor” will no longer hold the title after getting obliterated for re-election last night, a month after brawling with her constituents. As The New York Post reported, the antics and illegal behavior finally caught up to scandal-plagued Dolton Mayor Tiffany Henyard at the ballot box where she suffered a landslide loss in Democratic primary. Her opponent, Village Trustee Jason House, won almost 88% of the votes while Henyard could barely manage 12%. Making things even more embarrassing for Henyard, FOX 32 reported earlier in the day that she said she had “no competition” and would...

A violent Tren de Aragua gang member who is suspected of murder has been released from prison in Chicago despite a 2022 deportation order. Pedro Colmenares, 33, of Venezuela, entered the United States in 2022 and was ordered to be deported by an immigration judge just a few months later. In 2024, two years after he was ordered to be deported, Colmenares was back in the hands of law enforcement on a weapons charge. “DHS issued an ICE detainer on Colmenares, but because of its sanctuary policy, Cook County refused to comply with the detainer, and Colmenares was set free,”...

The use of Nazi imagery has become so ubiquitous among Democrats that it almost precludes notice. But Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s parallels between U.S. President Donald Trump’s political agenda and the rise of Nazi Germany during his “State of the State” budget address on Feb. 19 hit a new low. Veering from his speech, Pritzker, who is Jewish, referred to Nazis no less than six times during his criticism of Trump and his policies. In a glaring warning to Illinois citizens, he compared the rise of the Nazis to the Republican Party leader in the White House. Rabbi David Katz,...

Republican voters gathered Friday in the northwest suburbs for a fundraiser with President Donald Trump's daughter-in-law. In a ballroom packed with Republican donors and voters, MAGA ballcaps and Trump t-shirts projected their message of the moment. That message: they love it here. "I think it's shining a light for everyone in Illinois to understand we can do this," former Republican Illinois gubernatorial candidate Darren Bailey said. 'We can get things fixed again." The McHenry County GOPAC is boosting the base, and President Trump's daughter-in-law Lara Trump, the former co-chair of the Republican National Committee, flew into town on something of...

SPRINGFIELD — Gov. JB Pritzker on Wednesday compared President Donald Trump’s “authoritarian playbook” to the rise of the Nazis as he unveiled a $55.2 billion spending plan that also saves the state more than $400 million by nixing a health care program for adults who lack legal status.

In his budget and State of the State Address, Gov. J.B. Pritzker invoked the rise of Nazi German in criticizing the Trump administration.

I do not invoke the specter of Nazis lightly. But I know the history intimately — and have spent more time than probably anyone in this room with people who survived the Holocaust. Here’s what I’ve learned – the root that tears apart your house’s foundation begins as a seed – a seed of distrust and hate and blame. The seed that grew into a dictatorship in Europe a lifetime ago didn’t arrive overnight. It started with everyday Germans mad about inflation and looking for someone to blame. I’m watching with a foreboding dread what is happening in our country...

Illinois Governor J.D. Pritzker told reporters this week the big goal of his February 19 State of the State speech will be this message: speech “If we balance the budget again this year, I believe people will finally see that Illinois can govern itself.” Wow. What a concept. Every red state balances its budget every year, This isn’t putting a man on Jupiter. Pritzker is looking at a budget hole of more than $3 billion, with mandated hikes in education and pension spending exploding the budget every day. He faces yet another looming teacher strike in Chicago (the teacher union...

O'Reilly then went on to predict that California Gov. Gavin Newsom would be "next" on the list of officials being sued. “The big power is Newsom in California. Newsom’s next. Hey, Gavin, they’re coming for you!” O’Reilly said. That appears a completely logical conclusion based on the DOJ's actions so far and Newsom's recalcitrance on the issue of illegal immigration in his state. O'Reilly also predicted that in all this, "Pritzker is going to get destroyed" and Trump would "bring down" James and Bragg.

... As President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown grips the Chicago area in fear, a burgeoning resistance movement has also emerged here to challenge — as well as evade — immigration enforcement. From statements of defiance by local leaders to an unofficial network of tips and alerts on various social media sites, Chicagoland has become an epicenter of opposition to the president’s immigration agenda. Nonprofits have ramped up education campaigns to inform undocumented residents of their rights. A Chicago organization has launched a multilingual mobile “Know Your Rights” app, which includes an audio recitation of rights; the app was designed by...