chicagotribune--2020-12-10--Chicago officials outline initial coronavirus vaccine distribution plans: ‘We are very ready for the

Chicago officials outline initial coronavirus vaccine distribution plans: ‘We are very ready for the vaccine as it comes’

“ We are wanting to make sure that people are aware of that so that if they experience some of @ @ @ @ @ of them , that they don ’ t think that something ’ s wrong but @ @ @ @ @ effect of the vaccine , and expect it to be even more significant with this @ @ @ @ @ the first , ” she said .
“ We want to include that in our @ @ @ @ @ to be aware of that so that they can give the proper anticipatory guidance to @ @ @ @ @ to expect .
”

Mayor Bill de Blasio bumps forearms with Tara Easter, a registered nurse at NYU-Langone Hospital who received the COVID-19 vaccine, Dec. 14, 2020, in New York. (Kevin Hagen / AP)
With federal approval for two coronavirus vaccines expected soon, Chicago officials said Wednesday they hope to vaccinate all city adults in 2021 as they laid out their plans to roll out the vaccine.
But even as city officials celebrated the news of imminent vaccine approval, Mayor Lori Lightfoot warned residents to follow public health guidance and not grow complacent because widespread community vaccination is still “many months away.”
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“I don’t want people to think they can stop doing the kinds of public health directives and using the tools we’ve been talking about for many, many months,” including wearing a mask, Lightfoot said.
Initial vaccine doses will be sent to all 34 hospitals in Chicago, city officials said. Health care workers who treat COVID-19 patients or are at high risk for coronavirus spread will be first to receive it, city officials said.
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After health care workers, vaccines will be prioritized for a broad group of people including residents and staff at long-term care facilities, individuals at high risk due to underlying medical conditions, people who are 65 and older, and workers in “essential and critical industries.”
That broad designation potentially allows a wide array of people to be eligible, though public health Commissioner Dr. Allison Arwady said the definition of essential workers likely will be clarified through additional guidance from federal officials.
The city expects 100,000 to 150,000 doses to be available in December, though that’s just an estimate, with an initial shipment of 23,000 doses. City officials hope all Chicagoans will be vaccinated sometime in 2021, Lightfoot said.
“We are excited about this, we are very ready for the vaccine as it comes,” Arwady said.
Clinical research nurse Samantha Gatewood prepares to administer a shot in an AstraZeneca vaccine trial at Rush University Medical Center on Dec. 3, 2020. (E. Jason Wambsgans / Chicago Tribune)
Much of the situation remains in flux, officials said, but the city is working through its plans while awaiting federal guidance and vaccines. As the vaccine becomes more widely available, the city will rely on providers including doctors’ offices, pharmacies, federally qualified health centers and hospitals to help distribute doses.
To help ensure equitable access for Chicago residents, the city also will be using centralized sites such as some City Colleges as mass vaccination sites aimed at health care workers who aren’t based in hospitals, Arwady said.
At most, larger hospitals will get fewer than 2,000 doses while smaller hospitals will get hundreds, Arwady said.
Gov. J.B. Pritzker, meanwhile, said the state has received guidance that it will receive shipments of the COVID-19 vaccine timed in a way so that people will be able to receive the two necessary shots within the recommended time frame.
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“It’s my understanding that actually they’re not shipping the first shipment until they know they have the second shipments available,” Pritzker said. “In other words, no one will get a first dose, I am told, of a particular manufacturer’s vaccine like Pfizer, without there being a second one that is already available.”
State officials have estimated the total number of doses the state will receive in its first shipment of the Pfizer vaccine will be 109,000, which includes Chicago’s share. That estimate has changed multiple times, though.
On the same day city officials reported their general plans for early vaccine deliveries, the state on Wednesday reported 8,256 newly confirmed and probable cases of COVID-19 statewide and 179 additional deaths.
The state is now reporting a total of 812,430 cases and 13,666 deaths throughout the course of the pandemic. As of Tuesday night, 5,284 people were hospitalized across the state with COVID-19, and 1,176 of those patients were in intensive care units, while 647 were on ventilators.
The new cases reported Wednesday came out of a batch of 92,737 tests, and the seven-day statewide positivity rate for cases as a share of total tests conducted was 9.6% as of Tuesday, down from 10.6% a week earlier. State officials said Wednesday even as vaccines begin rolling out, testing for COVID-19 will remain a large focus in 2021.
“Even with all the well-deserved excitement around a vaccine right now, it will be months before vaccines are available to the general public,” Pritzker said. “So it’s incredibly important that we do everything in our power to temper the spread of this virus in the coming weeks and months.”
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While Arwady said health officials are excited about the prospects of the coming vaccine, she also sounded a cautionary note to residents to maintain or increase their vigilance against the coronavirus. Since Thanksgiving, when the city’s positivity rate had dropped from a fall high of about 16% to about 11%, that figure has increased again to just more than 13%, Arwady said.
“Now is the time, if you’ve let up, to get even more serious,” she said.
The city’s also averaging 17 to 18 deaths per day, compared with two to three during the summer, she said.
“I would encourage you to continue to think in the way that you were maybe thinking before Thanksgiving, about the risk of COVID, because the risk is not gone, and we need to turn this increase around again in Chicago.”
Also Wednesday, Chicago public health officials said they plan to open vaccination clinics for other health care workers, which will be by appointment only.
Officials are also concerned about Black and Latino residents not getting the vaccine due to government mistrust. In an effort to deal with that, Arwady said the city is working on its communication strategy and working with community groups.
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Broadly, the city plans to pair essential workers in neighborhoods with church or community groups to be role models and spread the word about the vaccine, she said.
Officials also will collect demographic information to track race, neighborhoods and other key details about people who are vaccinated.
Vaccines won’t be mandatory for residents, Arwady said, but as the vaccine rolls out further, she anticipates that some industries such as airlines might begin requiring customers to get vaccinated. She said the city will also be encouraging residents to get vaccinated.
“My goal is to really have done the work to build some of that trust so that this is something that people are feeling excited about as opposed to being a major point of discussion,” she said.
Arwady said the earliest she anticipates vaccines being available for health care workers is sometime next week.
As part of the city’s push to get residents vaccinated, Arwady also touted the safety of the vaccine. She said it has shown only mild side effects and has been largely successful in preventing people from getting sick.
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The state’s top public health official, state Department of Public Health Director Dr. Ngozi Ezike, said following vaccinations beginning in the U.K. this week, there were reports of two significant allergic reactions among those inoculated. The two people have a history of “severe” allergic reactions and carry EpiPens with them for that purpose. Both recovered, Ezike said.
“Since then, they have made a new recommendation that anyone with that history of severe allergic reactions should hold off on getting the vaccination,” Ezike said.
Fever, malaise and headache are among the side effects that were reported by people who took part in vaccine trials, which were seen in 20% to 25% of those people, Ezike said.
“We are wanting to make sure that people are aware of that so that if they experience some of those symptoms, or all of them, that they don’t think that something’s wrong but instead understand that is an effect of the vaccine, and expect it to be even more significant with this second dose as opposed to the first,” she said. “We want to include that in our messaging, we want providers to be aware of that so that they can give the proper anticipatory guidance to people so they know what to expect.”
gpratt@chicagotribune.com
jmunks@chicagotribune.com


chicagotribune--2020-12-10--Indiana man charged with murder after death of Evanston attorney Daniel Murray, who is remembered as

Indiana man charged with murder after death of Evanston attorney Daniel Murray, who is remembered as a ‘luminously decent fellow’

“ Instead of shrinking back into the privacy of his home or office , you ’ d see him in @ @ @ @ @ Courthouse ) all the time .
Whether he had a cane or a walker or @ @ @ @ @ to fall over or not , he just plunged forward and didn ’ t let @ @ @ @ @ him .
”

Daniel Murray, a former federal prosecutor and trial attorney remembered by colleagues and friends as a “luminously decent fellow,” died Nov. 27.
His death came weeks after he was seriously injured in a seemingly random attack near his Evanston home.
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Murray, 71, described as both a wise mentor and highly competitive pick-up basketball player, was well known in legal circles around Chicago. For years, he volunteered his legal services to nonprofits that advocate for incarcerated mothers and those impacted by poverty and racial inequality.
The way Murray lived his life made the brutal manner of his death all the more tragic, say those who knew him.
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On Wednesday, Cory Gilmartin, 34, of Mishawaka, Ind., was formally charged with first-degree murder. Prior to Murray’s death, Gilmartin was already in custody on charges related to the Nov. 10 attack, including attempted murder and aggravated battery, according to court records.
Police say they are not aware of any connection between the two men.
Murray “was the kind of guy you could reach out to any time, and he would call you back or he’d show up,” said Patty Gustin, a Naperville city councilwoman who previously worked for Murray as a secretary and paralegal in the U.S. attorney’s office in the Chicago-based Northern District.
Daniel Charles Murray (Family photo)
For years, Murray also volunteered with area nonprofits where he used his legal knowledge to help others.
Gail Smith, founder and executive director of the former Chicago Legal Advocacy for Incarcerated Mothers, said Murray volunteered for about 15 years with her organization. He visited women in jail and taught them about criminal procedure so they could better navigate their own cases.
“He was an amazing teacher,” Smith said. “Really clear, really detailed. One of the most generous volunteers we ever had.”
If other volunteers canceled, Murray told Smith to call him to fill in, she remembered.
“(Clients) could tell when someone really cared about them,” Smith said. “He taught with a lot of spirit.”
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Friends and colleagues remembered Murray’s strong moral code, too.
“Dan was a man of conviction, morals and integrity who would say when I was running for city councilwoman, ‘A good elected official must remember it is about community, not self, not money,” Gustin recalled. “Otherwise those elected officials get indicted.’”
Murray was born in Evanston and lived most of his life in the Rogers Park neighborhood of Chicago before returning in retirement to the town of his birth, his family said. He spent his career as an assistant U.S. attorney before joining the Chicago law firm of Johnson & Bell, Ltd. as partner, according to his obituary.
He also volunteered with Cabrini Green Legal Aid and was active with St. Ignatius Parish in Rogers Park.
Murray suffered blunt force head trauma during the Nov. 10 assault. Just after 7 p.m. that night, he walked from his home in the 500 block of Main Street to a nearby restaurant to pick up a take-out order for himself and his wife, Martha, according to the Cook County state’s attorney and medical examiner’s offices.
Murray had Parkinson’s disease and used a walker, according to the state’s attorney’s office. He never made it to the restaurant.
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Instead, police responding to a disturbance call encountered Gilmartin, and then found Murray unconscious in a service corridor adjacent to NorthShore Immediate Care. Murray often used the route as a shortcut, according to prosecutors.
About that time, Murray’s wife came looking for him when he didn’t pick up the food or return home. She identified him for first responders.
Security cameras did not capture the initial encounter between Gilmartin and Murray, but did record the latter part of the violent assault, according to prosecutors.
Evanston Police Commander Brian Henry said the two men did not appear to know each other, and could not say why Gilmartin was in Evanston the night Murray was attacked.
Colleagues this week remembered Murray’s dedication to family, as well as his fighting spirit on the basketball court, in the courtroom or when facing Parkinson’s disease later in life.
Gustin said Murray took her under his wing when she was a young mom going through a divorce, and their families remained friends for decades. He was there when she remarried, and they all attended basketball games together at Marquette University — Murray’s alma mater — when Gustin’s daughter studied there.
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Connie Henrichs, who worked with Murray as an attorney in the U.S. attorney’s office and is now retired, said Murray encouraged her to go forward with the adoption of her daughter from China, about two decades ago.
“He was very much a family person,” Henrichs said. “I was contemplating doing an international adoption, and he was very supportive. Some people thought I was totally insane, but it was the best decision of my life.”
Henrichs recalled the way Murray spoke about his family.
“It reinforced my decision to go forward,” she said.
Tom Walsh, chief of the civil division in the U.S. attorney’s office, said his former colleague never stayed late on Friday nights to swap stories over drinks. Fridays were for pizza with his three kids.
“As much as he would have liked to stay, he religiously made it home in time so the kids would have a routine,” Walsh said. “He would always try to get home for that Friday night, pizza night.”
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As kind and generous as he was to his friends and colleagues, Walsh said Murray’s competitive nature emerged both on the basketball court and in the courtroom.
“He had a reputation for playing really annoyingly tight defense on basketball games,” Walsh said. “You just didn’t want to be on the other team playing basketball, or in the real court either.”
Michael Hogan, a retired Cook County Circuit Court judge, remembered Murray from his involvement at St. Ignatius Parish, where both families’ kids went to Catholic school, and where Murray loved to play pick-up basketball.
“He was always supporting his children,” Hogan said. Even after they graduated, Murray continued volunteering at the parish.
“Right before the pandemic, when he was having a hard time walking (due to Parkinson’s), he came to the golf outings, sat on the school grounds having brats and hot dogs with everybody,” Hogan said. “It wasn’t easy for him to get there.”
Cook County Circuit Court Judge James Shapiro, who followed a similar path to Murray in the U.S. attorney’s office, said he looked up to Murray as an attorney.
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“He always struck me as a luminously decent fellow,” Shapiro said. “He seemed like a real mensch to me.”
Retired federal judge Mike Mason met Murray in 1974, when they both worked for the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals while attending law school at night. Murray taught Mason how to file and distribute briefs, and they played basketball together at a gym on Navy Pier. They remained close friends for the rest of Murray’s life.
“He just was a good person. He was a good worker. He did his job. He helped other people do theirs,” Mason said. “He was really kind to people who were down on their luck.”
Murray developed Parkinson’s disease in his early 50s, family members confirmed. But Walsh said that didn’t hold back his old friend.
“He suffered from Parkinson’s disease, or I think Parkinson’s suffered from Dan,” Walsh said.
“Instead of shrinking back into the privacy of his home or office, you’d see him in the (Dirksen U.S. Courthouse) all the time. Whether he had a cane or a walker or looked like he was going to fall over or not, he just plunged forward and didn’t let it beat him or define him.”
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Murray is survived by his wife, Martha Murray, and adult children Michaela, Tyler and Brian Murray.
Gilmartin in scheduled to be arraigned on the murder charge Dec. 18, according to police.
gbookwalter@chicagotribune.com
This story was updated to add an additional quote.


chicagotribune--2020-12-10--Off-duty Chicago officer’s son fatally shot in ‘domestic-related’ incident after fight with father i

Off-duty Chicago officer’s son fatally shot in ‘domestic-related’ incident after fight with father in Garfield Ridge home, sources say

Rafael Flores , who lived in the same block where he died , was pronounced dead at 2:02 a.m. , @ @ @ @ @ a spokeswoman for the medical examiner ’ s office , who said Flores ’ autopsy @ @ @ @ @ for Thursday .

The body of a man in his 20s is removed from a home on the 5600 block of South Nottingham Avenue in Chicago's Garfield Ridge neighborhood where he was shot to death inside the home, allegedly during an altercation with an off-duty Chicago police officer on Dec 9, 2020. (Jose M. Osorio / Chicago Tribune)
A man in his 20s who was shot to death inside a home on the Southwest Side by an off-duty Chicago police officer after a fight has been identified as the officer’s son, multiple sources said Wednesday.
Police responded to the 5600 block of South Nottingham Avenue in the Garfield Ridge neighborhood about 1:45 a.m., according to a statement from Chicago police. They believe the shooting was “domestic-related.”
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Rafael Flores, who lived in the same block where he died, was pronounced dead at 2:02 a.m., according to Brittany Hill, a spokeswoman for the medical examiner’s office, who said Flores’ autopsy will most likely be scheduled for Thursday.
Multiple sources said Flores is the officer’s son. Records show the owner of the home has been a Chicago cop for about 20 years.
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[ Ohio man fatally shot by police was holding a sandwich, not a gun, his family says ]
Flores died inside the home after he was shot “by the homeowner during a physical” fight, according to the police media notification. Sources said the homeowner is the off-duty Chicago police officer who fired his weapon.
Police said the man was 23, and after initially identifying the man’s age as 26, the Cook County medical examiner’s office later corrected that information, confirming he was 23.
The Civilian Office of Police Accountability is investigating.
“Our investigation is now open and ongoing,” said Ephraim Eaddy, a spokesman for the police oversight office.
[ Man seriously injured after exchanging gunfire with Chicago cops who stopped his car in Rogers Park, police say ]
“Usually COPA responds to incidents where an officer has discharged their weapon, so obviously, in a case like this, that will definitely be the reason we responded,” he said.
Authorities did not answer questions Wednesday morning.
“At this time, we have no additional information beyond what is posted,” police spokeswoman Kellie Bartoli wrote in an email.
Chicago Tribune’s Jeremy Gorner contributed.
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kdouglas@chicagotribune.com
jgorner@chicagotribune.com


chicagotribune--2020-12-10--DuPage County expects to receive and start administering 13,000 COVID vaccines next week

It will be up to hospitals and care facilities that receive the vaccine to determine who in the top-priority group @ @ @ @ @ DuPage County Director of Community Health Resources Chris Hoff said .
Most likely emergency room @ @ @ @ @ care unit workers and those who handle inpatient services will receive the first shots , @ @ @

A woman is given the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine Tuesday in Cardiff, Wales. DuPage County could be administering the same vaccination next week after receiving its first 13,000 doses, health department officials said. (Andrew Testa / The New York Times)
DuPage County expects to receive its first COVID-19 vaccine distribution and start administering about 13,000 COVID-19 vaccinations next week, health department officials said.
The first allotment will only cover a portion of the 58,000 health care workers and long-term care facility residents and staff in DuPage who are considered to be the highest priority for being inoculated, officials said.
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Because it’s not known how many doses will be included in future weekly vaccine deliveries, it’s possible it could be several months before the first group is entirely vaccinated, officials said.
“We have extremely limited supplies of vaccines so far,” health department Executive Director Karen Ayala told the DuPage County Board in a presentation Tuesday. “We don’t want to overpromise what is coming. I think the most important thing is, whatever the amount, we are planning for weekly distributions.”
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Loyola University Medical Center in Maywood has been designated the regional vaccine distribution center for DuPage and Will counties and a portion of Cook County, Ayala said.
A nurse holds a phial of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine, the first delivery of which is expected to arrive in DuPage County next week, officials said. (Frank Augstein/AP)
County health departments will be responsible for coordinating vaccine delivery to locations in their counties, she said.
It will be up to the hospitals and care facilities that receive the vaccine to determine who in their top-priority group will be vaccinated first, DuPage County Director of Community Health Resources Chris Hoff said. Most likely emergency room and ICU staff, COVID-19 care unit workers and those who handle inpatient services will get the initial shots, he said.
Pfizer is the first company expected to have its vaccine approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and released for delivery.
They will likely be followed by Moderna, which could have its vaccine approved next week and out for distribution the week of Dec. 20. Once that happens, the number of doses available in DuPage and elsewhere will increase, health department officials said.
Two shots are required to achieve 90% to 95% virus protection so 13,000 doses will not mean 13,000 people have been vaccinated. The second shot must be administered three to four weeks after the first and both vaccines must come from the same manufacturer.
Once the highest-priority group is vaccinated, health officials will move on to vaccinating others in the first phase group, which includes first responders, essential workers, adults with high-risk medical conditions, and adults 65 and older, Ayala said.
“Even for our higher-risk residents, it may be a couple of months,” she said.
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One additional complication is the Pfizer vaccine needs to be stored in ultracold freezers, Ayala said. The freezers purchased by DuPage have yet to arrive so they are partnering with private groups that can provide storage with temperatures that go to 70 degrees Celsius/-94 degrees Farenheit, she said.
DuPage is still finalizing plans on how to mass administer the vaccinations, and determining if a drive-through setup is viable, Ayala said. Next week, the health department plans to launch a campaign making people aware of the vaccine and quelling fears about its safety, she said.
raguerrero@tribpub.com


chicagotribune--2020-12-09--The Spin: Lightfoot, city officials ‘ready’ when vaccine is approved | Durbin vs. McConnell on relie

The Spin: Lightfoot, city officials ‘ready’ when vaccine is approved | Durbin vs. McConnell on relief package | Mellody Hobson rises to Starbucks board chairwoman

“ The senator from Kentucky is insisting that there be immunity to liability as part of any agreement .
It @ @ @ @ @ a difficult topic , a controversial topic , but I plead with him to hold @ @ @ @ @ issue of liability .
Accept this emergency bill that we have put together as a @ @ @ @ @ address this issue in the reality of the world that we live , ” Durbin @ @ @ @ @ point : “ How can we , in good conscience , go home for Christmas @ @ @ @ @ Christmas , 12 million Americans will see their unemployment insurance disappear because of our inability @ @ @ @

Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot removes her face mask before speaking at a news conference at City Hall in Chicago on Nov. 24, 2020. (Terrence Antonio James / Chicago Tribune)
With the federal government poised to approve emergency COVID-19 vaccines in the U.S., Mayor Lori Lightfoot and other officials laid out initial distribution plans that include a goal of getting shots into the arms of all adults in Chicago before 2021 is out.
Meantime, Congress continues to slog through another day of negotiating a new coronavirus-relief package, with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell saying he’ll drop his pet provision to shield businesses against lawsuits over COVID-19-related negligence if Democrats drop theirs — aid to state and local governments. Democratic U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin of Springfield pleaded for McConnell, a Kentucky Republican, to move past his demand and ink a deal.
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This afternoon, Lightfoot blasted McConnell’s latest chess move.
And Illinois U.S. Rep. Adam Kinzinger is asking for prayers today as crews search for a missing pilot in his Wisconsin Air National Guard unit, after a fighter jet crashed last night in Michigan during a training mission.
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Welcome to The Spin.
Mayor Lori Lightfoot removes her face mask before speaking at a news conference at City Hall in Chicago on Nov. 24, 2020. (Terrence Antonio James / Chicago Tribune)
The Tribune’s Gregory Pratt and Jamie Munks write: “With federal approval for two coronavirus vaccines expected soon, Chicago officials said Wednesday they hope to vaccinate all city adults in 2021 as they laid out their plans to roll out the vaccine.
“Initial vaccine doses will be sent to all 34 hospitals in Chicago, city officials said. Health care workers who treat COVID-19 patients or are at high risk for coronavirus spread will be first to receive it, city officials said.” Read the full story here.
During his daily COVID-19 news conference, Gov. Pritzker today said the state will receive shipments of the COVID-19 vaccine timed in a way so that people will be able to receive the two necessary shots within the recommended timeframe.
Tomorrow the U.S. Food and Drug Administration will hold a public hearing on Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine, in what is expected to be a final crucial step toward the launch of nationwide vaccinations. Read the AP explainer here.
Data points: The state is reporting 8,256 new COVID-19 cases and 179 additional deaths today. More here.
“Mayor Lori Lightfoot says she is ‘deeply disappointed’ in Wrigleyville Ald. Tom Tunney after the longtime alderman acknowledged letting people eat inside his Ann Sather restaurant despite city and state rules designed to help stop the spread of the coronavirus,” Pratt writes in a different story.
“Ald. Tunney understands that he made an intentional decision to break the rules. He didn’t just break them as a businessperson,” Lightfoot told reporters at an afternoon news conference. “He broke them as an alderman who swore an oath to live and abide by a higher set of standards than the average person, and that’s one of the things I’ve been hearing a lot from people that’s made them really angry and animated about this.”
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Tunney is facing up to $10,500 in possible fines from the city; Lightfoot said Tunney “will absolutely be held accountable.”
British regulators investigating two possible allergic reactions to Pfizer coronavirus vaccine on first day doses distributed, The Associated Press is reporting.
Rockford-area coroner buys refrigerated trailer as COVID-19 surges, The Associated Press is reporting.
Sign up for The Spin to get the top stories in politics delivered to your inbox weekday afternoons.
Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., listens during the confirmation hearing for Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett on Oct. 15, 2020 (Anna Moneymaker/AP)
“The Trump administration is back in the middle of Capitol Hill’s confusing COVID-19 negotiations, offering a $916 billion package to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi that would send a $600 direct payment to most Americans but eliminate a $300-per-week employment benefit favored by a bipartisan group of Senate negotiators,” The Associated Press reports.
Top Democrats, including Illinois U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin, are trying to rally support for the bipartisan $908 billion plan that includes not only the job benefit but also $160 billion for states and local governments, the AP notes.
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On the Senate floor this morning, Durbin pleaded with McConnell to shelve his call for giving businesses a legal shield against lawsuits over COVID-19-related negligence.
“The senator from Kentucky is insisting that there be immunity to liability as part of any agreement. It is a thorny topic, a difficult topic, a controversial topic, but I plead with him to hold to another day the overall issue of liability. Accept this emergency bill that we have put together as a bipartisan group of senators to address this issue in the reality of the world that we live,” Durbin said, adding at another point: “How can we, in good conscience, go home for Christmas knowing that the day after Christmas, 12 million Americans will see their unemployment insurance disappear because of our inability to act?”
Durbin was referring to two unemployment programs — one that provides self-employed and gig workers aid for the first time and another that extends traditional benefits beyond 26 weeks — that Congress enacted in a March COVID-19 relief package that expire Dec. 26.
Here in Chicago, Lightfoot held her nose over McConnell’s latest proposal, saying it’s “unbelievably shortsighted” and “I hope what Democrats in Congress will say ‘is over my dead body’”
Lightfoot said every city in the nation is hurting, pointing to Chicago’s own fiscal woes that include a $1.2 billion budget deficit the city is addressing going into 2021 — 65% of which, she says, is directly related to COVID-19.
“I know that there’s a lot of posturing that goes on in Washington, D.C., but dear God — stop the nonsense, get something done. We are hurting here in the heartland, and all across our country, and we need the federal government to step up and do their job.”
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Lightfoot-backed plan to let Cubs defer infrastructure payment to city advances in City Council, the Tribune’s John Byrne reports. Some are questioning at least the optics of the billionaire Cubs-owning Ricketts family getting the temporary reprieve as city residents are preparing to shell out more in property taxes.
2022 election: City Clerk Anna Valencia mulls run for Illinois Secretary of State — She’s just the latest to dip her toe in the water with the longtime Secretary of State Jesse White announcing he won’t run again, the Chicago Sun-Times’ Fran Spielman reports.
Sen. Tammy Duckworth speaks at a health care rally hosted by the American Optometric Association on Wednesday, June 21, 2017 at the West Front Lawn of the U.S. Capitol. (Brian Cassella/Chicago Tribune) (Brian Cassella / Chicago Tribune)
U.S. Sen. Tammy Duckworth has high praise for President-elect Joe Biden’s nominee for secretary of defense, recently retired Army Gen. Lloyd Austin. If confirmed, Austin would be the first African American person to hold the post.
But first he would need Congress to waive the legal requirement that anyone serving as secretary of defense must be out of uniform for at least seven years, the Associated Press reports. Austin retired in 2016.
On principle, Duckworth told MSNBC today, she’s a “no” vote on the waiver. The decorated Army combat veteran told Andrea Mitchell, “I believe very strongly that there needs to … civilian oversight of the military and by reducing the wait times … I just can’t support that on principle.”
NBC News breaks down why it’s potentially controversial: “Civilian control of the military has long been rooted in Americans’ wariness of large standing armies with the power to overthrow the government it is intended to serve. That is why the president is the civilian commander in chief, and it is the rationale behind the prohibition against a recently retired military officer serving as defense secretary.”
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Biden’s team is lobbying congressional Democrats to approve the waiver, which is necessary to advance the nomination. Sen. Durbin is considering it, NBC reports, and Duckworth said she expects enough lawmakers will back the move; President Donald Trump’s pick for post, retired U.S. Marine Gen. James Mattis, received such a waiver in 2017.
Despite her views on the waiver, Duckworth stressed she supports Austin’s nomination and would even help him prepare for the confirmation process, saying “General Austin is an excellent officer well tested, very capable of leading the Department of Defense.”
U.S. Rep. Adam Kinzinger speaks during a hearing Oct. 3, 2019, at Kennedy King College. (Antonio Perez / Chicago Tribune)
From The Associated Press: “A Wisconsin-based fighter jet crashed in a national forest in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula while on a training mission and searchers were looking Wednesday for the pilot, who was the only person aboard, authorities said.”
This morning, Rep. Kinzinger took to Twitter to ask for prayers, noting that the F-16 Fighting Falcon that went down about 8 p.m. Tuesday is assigned to the Wisconsin Air National Guard’s 115th Fighter Wing — his unit.
An Air Force veteran who served in Iraq and Afghanistan, Kinzinger, is a Channahon Republican and a lieutenant colonel in the Air National Guard.
My unit: please keep in your prayers. Godspeed https://t.co/BwBe2aZmyh — Adam Kinzinger (@RepKinzinger) December 9, 2020
Mellody Hobson, shown in 2016. (Abel Uribe / Chicago Tribune)
Starbucks Corp. announced today that Chicago’s Mellody Hobson, will become the next nonexecutive chair of the coffee giant’s board of directors, the first African American woman in that role, according to a number of outlets.
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A self-made millionaire, co-CEO of Ariel Investments and a philanthropist, Hobson’s been outspoken out about the lack of diversity in corporate America — particularly in the highest offices. CNBC notes that her appointment “comes as the Nasdaq asks the Securities and Exchange Commission to approve changes that push for greater diversity on the boards of publicly traded companies listed on its exchange.”
While Politico reported after the election that Hobson was “in the mix” for a post in President-elect Joe Biden’s administration, CBS News reported today that her new role leading the Starbucks board made that less likely. She’s also one part of a power couple with “Star Wars” creator George Lucas. Read more about her Chicago bio here.
Some of the weapons collected in a Los Angeles Gun Buyback event are showcased Dec. 27, 2012. (Damian Dovarganes / AP)
“A state appellate court has upheld the village of Deerfield’s power to ban assault weapons, reversing part of a lower-court ruling that had thrown out an amended village ordinance,” Pioneer Press reporter James T. Norman writes.
That means the ban kicks in immediately. The Deerfield Village Board “passed an ordinance in 2013 after Illinois lawmakers gave home rule municipalities a 10-day window to regulate assault weapons before the Illinois Concealed Carry Act overrode their ability to do so,” Norman writes. Read the full story here.
Chicago’s civilian police investigative agency is reviewing a “personnel matter” involving an employee who was arrested yesterday on accusations he was involved in the looting of a downtown department store over the summer, officials said. He was later released without charges. Story via the Tribune’s Jeremy Gorner.
“A veteran Chicago police sergeant is suing two Wisconsin officers and several prosecutors for false arrest and malicious prosecution after the district attorney’s office dropped sexual assault charges against him, according to a federal lawsuit aimed at restoring the officer’s reputation and recouping the savings he exhausted fighting the case,” the Tribune’s Stacy St. Clair writes.
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