Release of emails by Chicago mayor doesn’t end dispute

Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel's decision to release thousands of pages of private emails does not end a dispute in Illinois about public access to such emails from him and other officials when they deal with government business. Emanuel announced late Wednesday that he had settled a lawsuit by a government watchdog group over emails from his personal accounts, but it allows him and his personal lawyer to decide which emails are public records and which are not.

Emanuel’s email highlights: Ken Griffin’s broken bike, a bid for Bezos and Uber oops

Mayor Rahm Emanuel turned over about 2,700 pages of emails Wednesday as part of a settlement with the Better Government Association, which had sued for the mayor's communications about official business on his personal email accounts. A Chicago Tribune suit on similar issues, filed before the BGA suit, remains unsettled.

Disgraced ex-Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich appeals prison

Former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich is asking a U.S. appeals court to nullify his 14-year prison term and order a third sentencing hearing, with a lawyer arguing on his behalf that the Democrat's model behavior behind bars and other factors justified a reduction in his sentence. Attorneys for the Chicago Democrat filed the appeal late Tuesday night with the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

Illinois House GOP Leader: Democrats – Still Reeling’ After Election

Illinois House Minority Leader Jim Durkin, R-Western Springs, speaks to Democratic lawmakers while on the House floor during a session at the Illinois State Capitol. The top Illinois House Republican claimed "tension is a lot stronger" in Springfield since the election, in part because Democrats are upset Republicans picked up seats.

How Fast Could GOP Congress Get Obamacare Repeal To Trump’s Desk?

House Majority Leader Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., is part of the Republican leadership working to repeal the Affordable Care Act as quickly as possible in January. Republicans in Congress are so eager to repeal the Affordable Care Act that some have vowed to get a bill to President-elect Donald Trump's desk on the day he takes the oath of office.

Law officers ask Obama for help policing pipeline protests

A dozen law enforcement officials in North Dakota are imploring President Barack Obama in a letter to send federal officers to help local police during protests against the $3.8 billion Dakota Access oil pipeline, citing costs, fatigue and a growing fear of vigilante justice. The officials asked Obama for 100 Border Patrol agents and members of the U.S. Marshals Service Special Operations Group, along with an unspecified amount of financial assistance, saying they've been "completely and utterly abandoned" by the federal government.

Trump won’t tip hand on pipeline

Industry leaders on Monday urged President-elect Donald Trump to make approval of the disputed Dakota Access oil pipeline a "top priority" when he takes office next month, while opponents who have protested the project for months vowed to stay put on their North Dakota encampment despite harsh wintry weather and a tribal leader's call to leave. The moves come after the Army Corps of Engineers declined to issue a permit for the $3.8 billion pipeline to cross under a Missouri River reservoir in southern North Dakota near the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation.

Trump not saying what hea ll do about Dakota Access pipeline

Industry leaders are urging President-elect Donald Trump to make approval of the disputed Dakota Access oil pipeline a "top priority" when he takes office next month, while opponents who have protested the project for months are vowing to stay put on their sprawling North Dakota encampment despite harsh winter weather and a tribal leaders' call to leave. The moves come after the Army declined to issue a permit for the $3.8 billion pipeline to cross under a Missouri River reservoir in southern North Dakota near the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation.

No progress made on Illinois budget

Illinois legislative leaders have made little headway in the latest weekend meeting at Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner's offices on a budget deal as Democrats broached the issue of how President-elect Donald Trump's policies might alter some financial calculations. House Democrat Greg Harris joined Democratic House Speaker Michael Madigan at a Sunday meeting in Chicago.

Musicians sign open letter to Barack Obama over North Dakota pipeline protests

Dozens of British musicians including producer Mark Ronson have signed an open letter to US President Barack Obama comparing the treatment of protesters at a controversial oil pipeline in North Dakota with "the same inhumane methods used during World War Two". Led by singer-songwriter Kate Nash, around 160 names from the world of music wrote the letter to President Obama and the Department of Justice.

The Folly of Opening Female Restrooms To Men

A sexual predator could be coming to an office-building restroom stall near you, because America and much of the world is flushing itself straight down the common-sense toilet. In addition to news of so-called bathroom bills and directives coming out of North Carolina, Illinois, Fort Worth, and Houston, the pre-filing of a bill for the 2017 Texas legislative session would give special protections on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity.

Trump Suggests ‘Loss of Citizenship or Year in Jail’ for Burning American Flag

Shortly before 7 a.m. on Tuesday, President-elect Donald Trump tweeted, "Nobody should be allowed to burn the American flag - if they do, there must be consequences - perhaps loss of citizenship or year in jail!" The only flag story in the news recently is the decision by Hampshire College in Massachusetts to stop flying the American flag after students allegedly burned a flag to protest Donald Trump's election victory. The Supreme Court ruled in 1969 that flag-burning is protected by the First Amendment.

Train derails in north India, killing 96 and trapping others

The Rhodes Trust has named the 32 American men and women chosen as Rhodes Scholars who will pursue post-graduate studies at Oxford University. The Rhodes Trust has named the 32 American men and women chosen as Rhodes Scholars who will pursue post-graduate studies at Oxford University.

115 dead as train derails in north India; some still trapped

Chicago police said charges could be announced soon in the fatal shooting of an Illinois congressman's grandson following an argument over a pair of basketball shoes. Chicago police said charges could be announced soon in the fatal shooting of an Illinois congressman's grandson following an argument over a pair of basketball shoes.

The Latest: 49ers honor DeBartolo during halftime ceremony

The Rhodes Trust has named the 32 American men and women chosen as Rhodes Scholars who will pursue post-graduate studies at Oxford University. This year's class of Rhodes scholars from the U.S. includes students who have used data to visualize sea level rise, some who speak several languages and the son of undocumented immigrants.

Illinois Democrats, GOP remain far apart in budget talks

SPRINGFIELD – Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan suggested Tuesday that legislators should approve another short-term spending plan without giving in to any of Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner's demands, indicating the ideological divide behind the state's epic budget stand persisted through the bruising election season. The Democrat made the comments after meeting with Rauner and other GOP leaders for the first time since Election Day, when the Republicans picked up enough seats in the state House to leave Democrats four votes shy of the supermajority they'd need to override the governor's vetoes.

Dakota pipeline protesters say they were detained in dog kennels; 268 …

A line of police move towards a roadblock and encampment of Native American and environmental protesters near an oil pipeline construction site, near the town of Cannon Ball, North Dakota, U.S. October 27, 2016 Tens of thousands of people have checked in on Facebook at the Standing Rock Indian Reservation in the past few days. They are expressing solidarity with protests against the Dakota Access pipeline in North Dakota, which have faced an increasingly brutal backlash from police.

Praise to the Republicans with the moral courage to stand up to James Comey

Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton waves as she boards her campaign plane at Westchester County Airport in White Plains, N.Y., Saturday, Oct. 29, 2016, to travel to Florida. Although most Republicans are exulting in the decision by FBI Director James Comey to announce that the agency was reopening its case into Hillary Clinton's emails, a handful of Republicans have spoken up to denounce Comey's electoral interference.