Columnists

Then-Chicago mayoral candidates Willie Wilson, center, and Brandon Johnson chat at a mayoral forum at Steinmetz College Prep, Jan. 31, 2023. (Armando L. Sanchez/Chicago Tribune)

Laura Washington: Mayor Brandon Johnson’s reelection campaign will be in trouble if Willie Wilson runs again

By Laura Washington

March 25, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

If Willie Wilson gets in the mayoral race, Black votes will come out of Mayor...

Riders gallop along a beach as oil tankers and cargo ships line up in the Strait of Hormuz near Khor Fakkan, United Arab Emirates, on March 11, 2026. (Altaf Qadri/AP)

Daniel DePetris: The Gulf states are between Iran and a hard place

By Daniel DePetris

March 24, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

For the Gulf Arab states, the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran is a tragedy. Nothing good...

Two GIs with the U.S. 25th Division read the Stars and Stripes newspaper at Cu Chi, South Vietnam, on Sept. 10, 1969. (Mark Godfrey/AP)

Clarence Page: Pentagon’s press panic threatens august Stars and Stripes

By Clarence Page

March 23, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

Pentagon chief spokesperson Sean Parnell asserted that going forward, Stars and Stripes would be "by...

Protesters who blocked the exits are arrested on Jan. 29, 2026, at the Target store at 1101 W. Jackson Blvd. in Chicago. A group of protesters refused to leave the store while others blocked the exits, calling for the company to distance itself from federal immigration authorities. (Terrence Antonio James/Chicago Tribune)

Elizabeth Shackelford: What history tells us about fighting the repression we are seeing here

By Elizabeth Shackelford

February 6, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

Past movements against repressive regimes were met with violence and repression, but gradually concessions were...

Kevin Warsh speaks to the media about his report on transparency at the Bank of England, in London on Dec. 11, 2014. (Alastair Grant/AP)

Steve Chapman: Will Fed pick Kevin Warsh show obeisance to Donald Trump or incur his wrath?

By Steve Chapman

February 4, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

Once he's Fed chair, Kevin Warsh will either carry out Donald Trump’s wishes by slashing...

Drivers wait in a long line to enter a gas station in Havana, Cuba, on Jan. 30, 2026. (Ramon Espinosa/AP)

Daniel DePetris: What kind of deal is the US looking for in Cuba?

By Daniel DePetris

February 3, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

Donald Trump insists the Cuban government will fall on its own volition yet also says...

President Donald Trump departs after speaking with reporters in the Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House in Washington on Jan. 20, 2026. (Alex Brandon/AP)

Clarence Page: The information war rages amid Donald Trump’s immigration chaos

By Clarence Page

February 1, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

The jackboots are only part of the chaos of immigration operations. Another key element is...

Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson speaks during a news conference on the fifth floor of City Hall on Jan. 27, 2026. (Chris Sweda/Chicago Tribune)

David Greising: What are Mayor Brandon Johnson’s plans for stopping abuses by immigration agents?

By David Greising

January 30, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

Mayor Brandon Johnson’s big moment to issue a call against immigration agent abuses was a...

Crossing guard Joe Sass carries a student though a flooded North Side intersection on Jan. 22, 2026, captured in video from WGN-TV's news helicopter. (WGN-TV)

Heidi Stevens: In the city of big shoulders, a crossing guard shows how we carry our love for all children

By Heidi Stevens

January 28, 2026 at 4:21 p.m.

Joe Sass was caught on camera practicing his mantra: treating every child how he would...

The Ambassador Bridge, where $400 billion in trade crosses between Canada and the U.S. each year, in Windsor, Canada, on Feb. 1, 2025. (Ian Willms/The New York Times)

Daniel DePetris: Donald Trump stirs up trouble in US-Canada relations

By Daniel DePetris

January 27, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

U.S.-Canada relations are getting iced over due to a philosophical difference of how international politics...

U.S. Sen. Everett Dirksen, of Illinois, the Republican leader, sits on a desk in the Senate Press Gallery at the Capitol in Washington on May 5, 1964, to discuss efforts at ironing out differences among supporters of the House-passed civil rights bill. He and other leaders reported progress after a conference. (Henry Griffin/AP)

John T. Shaw: Two iconic US senators from Illinois demonstrated different dimensions of statesmanship

By John T. Shaw

January 26, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

U.S. senators from Illinois, Democrat Paul Douglas and Republican Everett Dirksen, made consequential contributions to...

The Forty Acres Fresh Market is located at 5713 W. Chicago Ave. in Chicago’s Austin neighborhood, as shown Sept. 29, 2025. (Antonio Perez/Chicago Tribune)

Edward Keegan: West Side fresh market asks, ‘What would it look like if we actually got our 40 acres?’

By Edward Keegan

January 25, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

The new Forty Acres Fresh Market on Chicago Avenue in the Austin neighborhood succeeds at...

A woman is detained by Border Patrol agents on Jan. 21, 2026, in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The driver and passenger of a vehicle and several observers were detained after a car accident on Blaisdell Avenue. (Stephen Maturen/Getty)

Heidi Stevens: As federal agents target citizens, where are the folks who cried ‘tyranny’ over pandemic restrictions?

By Heidi Stevens

January 23, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

I’m wondering how federal immigration agents' actions sit with those who saw vaccine mandates as...