Happy (almost) St. Patrick’s Day, Chicago! While the official holiday isn’t till Tuesday, most festivities take place Saturday, including the downtown parade and time-honored tradition of dyeing the Chicago River green. If you’re looking to celebrate, here’s the Tribune’s restaurant guide to the best spots with river views, holiday specials and tastings. Oh, and don’t miss food critic Louisa Chu’s deep dive into the people behind the city’s best corned beef sandwiches.
But the Irish won’t be the only ones celebrating Tuesday — a handful of politicians hope to be as well. St. Patrick’s Day falls on Election Day this year in Illinois, with statewide primary races for U.S. Senate, governor, lieutenant governor secretary of state, attorney general, comptroller and treasurer, five open U.S. House seats in the Chicago area and a number of local races, including Cook County Board president. Here’s what else to know before the election — and if you’re still deciding how to vote, catch up on the Tribune Editorial Board’s endorsements, here.
The war in Iran intensified this week. The Islamic Republic launched multiple attacks Friday on Israel and neighboring Gulf states, a day after Iran’s new supreme leader vowed to avenge those who’ve died in the war, including the 165 people killed in a U.S. missile strike on an elementary school. About 140 U.S. troops have been wounded in the conflict and at least 13 American service members have died, including six who were killed when a refueling plane crashed in western Iraq. Iranian strikes have also effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz, a key oil and gas shipping route in the Persian Gulf. As a result, the war’s economic toll is also becoming more apparent: Oil jumped to $100 a barrel, which in turn has gas prices soaring stateside. The White House, meanwhile, won’t rule out a military draft.
Locally, intense thunderstorms, tornadoes and possible record-size hail hit the region Tuesday evening. At least two people were killed in northwest Indiana, another person was found dead in Aroma Park, Illinois, and nearly 500 structures were damaged throughout Kankakee County. Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker and Indiana Gov. Mike Braun surveyed the destruction in their respective states Thursday and both promised to seek federal aid to assist those impacted.
In Chicago, alderman blocked an attempt by their colleagues to ban video gambling machines from their wards, Mayor Brandon Johnson’s pick to lead Animal Care and Control is facing backlash, and the federal government wants to cut flights at O’Hare, saying the airport will be over capacity this summer. The city has asked them to reconsider. The mayor also wants to create “democracy zones” outside polling places to protect residents casting their ballots from immigration agents — but they won’t be in place until November’s general election at the earliest.
Also in immigration-related news, federal prosecutors dropped charges against two defendants in the “Broadview Six” case, which accused protesters of conspiring to block and damage an immigration agent’s car outside the ICE processing facility last fall. Another case tied to Operation Midway Blitz ended without a conviction Tuesday after the government entered into a deferred prosecution agreement with a man accused of assaulting a deputy U.S. marshal. The case will be dropped after six months if the defendant stays out of trouble. And a Skokie woman made headlines this week after her family claimed U.S. Department of Homeland Security detained her for nearly 48 hours, but the Tribune looked into her story and found that it is disputed by the federal government, two sheriff’s departments and her supposed employer.
Down in Arizona, the Chicago Cubs and White Sox have decided on their opening day pitchers, getting one step closer to the start of the season. In other sports news, Team USA had a surprising loss to Italy at the World Baseball Classic, as did the Illini in the Big Ten Tournament, while the Bears re-signed several players and lost others to free agency.
Plus, Hollywood’s biggest night is Sunday. If you haven’t seen the moving films nominated at this year’s Oscars, there’s still time. Here’s what’s streaming and where to catch them on the big screen in Chicago.
Now let’s get into it! Here’s the latest installment of the Tribune’s Quotes of the Week quiz for March 8 to 14. Missed last week? You can find it here or check out our past editions of Quotes of the Week.
