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Illinois quick hits: Health officials report first human case of West Nile; Police arrest four girls for CTA attack
Health officials report first human case of West Nile Virus The Illinois Department of Public Health has announced the first human case of 2024 in Illinois of West Nile virus. The individual is in their 60s and lives in suburban Cook County. The onset of virus symptoms was in mid-June. IDPH has reported 33 Illinois counties this year with positive results. There were 119 human cases of the mosquito-borne illness reported in Illinois last year, up from 34 human cases in 2022. There were six...
$42 million tort claim accuses Washington AGO, WSU of racketeering
(The Center Square) – A potential subcontractor for a state police use of force database project who has had a long-running feud with the state Attorney General’s Office and Washington State University has now filed a $42 million tort claim that includes accusations of racketeering. Police Strategies CEO Bob Scales was among potential bidders on a request for proposal put out in 2022 by the AGO via Senate Bill 5259. A former King County prosecutor, Scales was also consulted by legislators as the bill advanced...
Democrats funnel major investments into Wisconsin campaigns
(The Center Square) – The Democratic National Committee announced a $3 million investment into the Wisconsin Democratic Party to help fund the Biden campaign’s operations in the state. “With the Republican National Convention underway in Milwaukee this week, the Biden-Harris campaign and Wisconsin Democrats are doubling down on our critical work of reaching voters across Wisconsin,” Democratic National Committee Chair Jaime Harrison said Tuesday. “We’re going to win this election by engaging voters community-by-community, block-by-block, door-by-door. These investments show that commitment in action.” ...
Lake castigates media and feds, then makes her case for Senate
(The Center Square) – Arizona U.S. Senate candidate Kari Lake castigated the news media about the border crisis, the federal government's failure to stem the flow of opioids into the country, and its bias against Donald Trump. Her crowd-rousing speech on Wednesday’s second day of the Republican National Convention was only seconds old when the former Phoenix news anchor said "fake news" media were not welcome at the RNC. It comes four days after the former president, seeking reelection against President Joe Biden, survived an...
Boulder County tax revenue providing $8M to nonprofits promoting community health
(The Center Square) – Approximately $8 million will be granted to nonprofit organizations focused on community health by the Boulder County Department of Human Services. The one-year grants will provide funding for projects beginning in 2025. It was formerly known as the “Human Services Safety Net Grant” and is now called the “Human Services Community Partnership Grant” to communicate the variety of funding sources and the importance of collaboration with community organizations. ...
Family shares how sister was raped, murdered by Salvadoran 'gotaway'
(The Center Square) – After his sister was raped and strangled to death by a Salvadoran who was illegally in the country, Maryland resident Michael Morin said former President Donald Trump called his family. They have still never heard from President Joe Biden, he said Tuesday night at the Republican National Convention. “Last year, we lost my beloved sister Rachel,” he said. “She went for a walk in one of our family's favorite places. This beautiful trail was to us a safe place where we...
Poll: Economy, personal finances most important issues to Wisconsin voters
(The Center Square) – Nearly three-quarters of voters in Wisconsin say their incomes haven’t kept up over the past four years and more than half say that’s their top issue this fall. The Institute for Reforming Government is out with a new poll that says “kitchen table issues” dominate the minds of voters heading into November. “So, what keeps moms and dads up at night? It's personal finances, and it's...
Aldermen table 'Community Power Over Policing' ordinance
(The Center Square) – Chicago’s Community Power Over Policing referendum is unlikely to be on the ballot this year. The city council has yet to vote on the ordinance, which would expand the Community Commission for Public Safety and Accountability. It would also give that commission negotiating power over contracts with the Fraternal Order of Police. Color of Change Policy Strategist Queen Adesuyi said the goal was to have the...
Michigan on track to reduce housing shortage by 2027
(The Center Square) – Michigan leaders say the state is on track to reach its housing development goal by 2027. Gov. Gretchen Whitmer created a Statewide Housing Plan in 2022 to build 115,000 housing units over the next five years to reduce the state’s housing shortage. Now, halfway through the program, Michigan has built or rehabilitated 50,000 housing units, placing the state on par for the next two years. The...
Spokane County's juvenile justice and jails tax heads to November ballot
(The Center Square) – Spokane County is asking voters to renew its Juvenile Detention Facility & Jails Sales Tax. Taxpayers send the county $15 million annually under the current tax. Voters can expect to see the measure on the ballot for the Nov. 5 general election, alongside the presidential nominees, other state initiatives and another sales tax proposed by the City of Spokane, assuming its city council decides to place...
Seattle City Council approves harsher penalties for illegal street racing
(The Center Square) – The Seattle City Council in an 8-1 vote passed emergency legislation on Tuesday meant to crack down on illegal street racing. The newly passed ordinance establishes a $500 civil infraction against the registered owner of a vehicle participating in illegal street racing. Seattle City Councilmember Rob Saka successfully included an amendment that increases the fine to $800 for a second infraction, and $1,500 for third and subsequent infractions. ...
'Total Failure:' Oversight Committee subpoenas head of Secret Service
(The Center Square) – U.S. House Oversight Chair Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., said Wednesday he is subpoenaing the head of the Secret Service, the latest step in the ongoing investigation and scrutiny of the agency after the near assassination of former president Donald Trump on Saturday. U.S. Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle in particular has faced criticism and calls for her resignation over how the Secret Service handled, and in many ways failed, during Saturday's event. ...
Schiff calls on Biden to bow out of 2024 race, ‘pass the torch’
(The Center Square) – U.S. Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., called on President Joe Biden to step out of the presidential race Wednesday, making him the latest high-profile Democrat to do so as Biden tries to manage a riff within his own party over his nomination. "While the choice to withdraw from the campaign is President Biden's alone, I believe it is time for him to pass the torch," Schiff said in a statement, first reported by The Los Angeles Times. ...
VIDEO: Black leaders ditching Illinois Democrats, stand with GOP state's attorney candidate
(The Center Square) – Some Black leaders from the Chicago area are urging others to ditch Democrats and vote Republican. After Wednesday’s GOP breakfast outside the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee Wednesday, Republican Cook County State’s Attorney candidate Bob Fioretti made his case to the media that he will bring back law and order. “You can’t bring businesses to the county unless we have safety in our streets, safety in...
DuPage County voters to consider forest preserve referendum
(The Center Square) – The DuPage County Forest Preserve Board is asking taxpayers for an additional $17 million per year. The Forest Preserve District Board of Commissioners unanimously approved a referendum on raising the property-tax cap. If voters agree, DuPage property owners would pay an estimated $11.67 more annually per $100,000 of home value. Board...
Committee to Unleash Prosperity: 'Trump economic policies better for the average worker'
(The Center Square) – “Bad economics and weak leadership lead to war,” said Arthur Laffer, a former economic advisor to Ronald Reagan. Donald Trump is our “greatest safety to avoid a third world war. Donald Trump can assure us that won't happen.” Laffer was joined at the Republican National Convention discussion by North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum and other panelists to discuss the contrast between the Trump and Biden administrations' economic policies. ...
Nearly all households opt-in to East Palestine settlement
(The Center Square) – According to court-appointed class attorneys, less than 1% of the nearly 200,000 households involved in the East Palestine train derailment settlement opted out of the $600 million deal. A court filing after the July 1 opt-out and objection deadline showed 0.09% of the 190,887 households in the settlement class opted out of the agreement. The settlement class includes households in Ohio and Pennsylvania. Seath A. Katz,...
Columbia University continues to face consequences over antisemitic incidents
(The Center Square) – Billionaire and U.S. News & World Report owner Mortimer Zuckerman pulled a hefty sum of donations to Columbia University due to their handling of antisemitism issues on their campus, The Washington Free Beacon reported. Zuckerman, an avid philanthropist, has a longstanding history of donating to Columbia University as he had pledged 200 million dollars to go toward their Mind Brain Behavior Institute, according to The Washington Free Beacon. ...
Democrats respond to Hovde's loaded speech at RNC
(The Center Square) – Wisconsin U.S. Senate candidate Eric Hovde blasted his opponent while calling for national unity during his speech at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, Wis. The Trump-endorsed Republican, who is challenging Democratic incumbent Sen. Tammy Baldwin, spoke Tuesday at the RNC, a night themed “Make America Safe Again.” He tied Baldwin to President Joe Biden Administration’s national security policies, calling her support of the president proof she is “detached” from Wisconsin voters’ concerns. ...
Louisville instructor out of a job after post on Trump assassination attempt
(The Center Square) – The Louisville college instructor who made a controversial social media post over the weekend regarding the assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump is out of a job, and he's blaming the school for kowtowing to "domestic terrorism." One day after announcing the faculty member was on unpaid leave, Bellarmine University issued a statement Tuesday evening saying the individual "is no longer a Bellarmine employee." The...
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