Good morning, Chicago.
Despite a federal jury last week convicting Tim Mapes of two felonies, the former chief of staff for Democratic House Speaker Michael Madigan continues to receive a nearly $150,000-a-year state government pension.
In fact, while he sat in the Dirksen U.S. Courthouse defending himself against a mountain of evidence, pension records show that Mapes automatically collected his monthly pension check of $12,492 for August.
And there’s a good chance he’ll keep collecting that money.
Read the full story from the Tribune’s Ray Long and Jason Meisner.
Here are the top stories you need to know to start your day.
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First lady Jill Biden seeks to leverage union support in Chicago
“My name is Jill Biden. I’m the first lady of the United States. And I’m a proud card-carrying union member,” the first lady, a community college teacher, said Wednesday during a six-minute address to hundreds of labor leaders attending an outdoor reception overlooking Lake Michigan at McCormick Place.
Mayor Brandon Johnson warns city would be unable to support more migrants without federal help
“Let me state this clearly: The city of Chicago cannot go on welcoming new arrivals safely and capably without significant support and immigration policy changes,” Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson said during a news conference at the Illinois Restaurant Association’s Loop headquarters. “This change would be a commonsense measure that would provide greater opportunities for (new) arrivals, immigrants, to build their lives here in the state of Illinois.”
Senate GOP leader Mitch McConnell appears to freeze up at event
Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell appeared to briefly freeze up and was unable to answer a question from a reporter at an event in Kentucky on Wednesday, weeks after he had a similar episode in Washington.
Judge holds Rudy Giuliani liable in Georgia election workers’ defamation case
A federal judge held Rudy Giuliani liable in a defamation lawsuit brought by two Georgia election workers who say they were falsely accused of fraud, ruling that the former New York city mayor gave “only lip service” to complying with his legal obligations while trying to portray himself as the victim in the case.
Guaranteed Rate continues layoffs as housing market slowdown persists
The Tribune spoke with more than a dozen current and former employees, and many told the Tribune that layoffs have happened several times in recent weeks, with entire teams wiped out. More layoffs are potentially on the horizon, and company morale is “in the toilet,” as one current employee put it.
Amazon sued over planned West Humboldt Park facility
The complaint alleges the 140,000-square-foot facility should have been designated a “freight terminal” under the city’s zoning code, which the West Humboldt Park resident who filed the lawsuit alleges would have required Amazon to go through a special use process in front of the city’s Zoning Board of Appeal.
In a 19th-century Chicago with no sewer system, human waste dumped into the river would flow freely into Lake Michigan, contaminating drinking water and causing fatal cholera outbreaks. The construction of the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal was completed by 1900, effectively reversing the flow of the Chicago River away from the lake.
Connecting the Little Calumet River to the canal is the 16-mile long Cal-Sag Channel that was also part of the project to reverse the flow of the Calumet River out of Lake Michigan.
Yet concerns about Chicago’s contaminated waterways persist.
Chicago Blackhawks will appear 13 times on national TV this season
Barring the unthinkable — Connor Bedard not making the Blackhawks opening roster — the whole country will get to watch his NHL debut.
Column: GM Ryan Poles says the Bears are ‘in a much better place’ than a year ago
The Bears have gotten younger as they head into the season opener Sept. 10 against the Green Bay Packers. Brad Biggs writes that’s notable considering the Bears were the seventh-youngest team in the league at the start of 2022, when they carried 13 rookies into the season.
Lenny Bruce is back, in the form of Ronnie Marmo, and performing in Skokie
Though dead for nearly 60 years, the controversial and influential comic will arrive in the form of Ronnie Marmo, a wickedly talented actor who has written and stars in the play “I’m Not a Comedian … I’m Lenny Bruce,” which he is presenting at the North Shore Center for the Performing Arts.
The Chicago Jazz Festival, long a favorite among the summer music festivals, returns for Labor Day weekend, celebrating jazz of all types and highlighting local talent alongside international artists at events Aug. 31 through Sept. 3.
