News from the last 30 days
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August 10, 2010
Taxpayers may pay for part of Blago's defense
Daily Southtown
During his federal trial, Rod Blagojevich's finances were summed up to jurors by his lawyer. "He's broke, man, broke! When I say broke, I mean broke!" Sam E. Adam shouted during his closing argument. Perhaps Adam knows best. The former governor's campaign fund, which has been paying his lawyers, has dwindled to its last dollars, opening the door to tap into taxpayer money. There is ... <read more> -
August 10, 2010
Durbin sets deadline for Mattoon's support of new FutureGen
Decatur Herald Review
MATTOON -- Local officials have an end-of-the-week deadline to say whether they want to host Mattoon's part of the reworked FutureGen coal project. U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin sent a letter Monday to Coles County's economic development organization asking community leaders to decide if "this project is not in the long-term best interests of the area." "Make no mistake, Coles County has the righ... <read more> -
August 10, 2010
A tax surprise after the election?
Kankakee Daily Journal
What will the Illinois income tax be when 2010 rolls into 2011? A wide variety of media outlets, including The Chicago Tribune, Bloomberg News and Illinois Statehouse News, all reported that David Vaught, Gov. Pat Quinn's budget director, told several state legislators to expect a bill raising the tax from 3 percent to 5 percent. "We're going to pass a tax increase in January," Vaught was... <read more> -
August 10, 2010
Durbin demands FutureGen answer from Mattoon
Moline Dispatch/Rock Island Argus
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (AP) -- U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin demanded Monday that officials in an eastern Illinois town decide by Friday whether they still want it to be part of a futuristic clean-coal project despite radical changes that scrap plans to build an experimental power plant. A representative for U.S. Rep. Tim Johnson, meanwhile, said his request for a meeting with Energy Secretary Steven Chu t... <read more> -
August 10, 2010
Chicago reports drop in crimes for July
Peoria Journal Star
CHICAGO -- Chicago police say new statistics available for the month of July show an overall drop in crime in the city and a decline that ends a four-month consecutive rise in murders. Chicago Police Superintendent Jody Weis said Monday that it was 19th consecutive month of lower overall crime. The Chicago Police Department found there were four fewer murders in July compared with July a yea... <read more> -
August 10, 2010
New Ill. Senate campaign ad accuses Kirk of lying
Peoria Journal Star
SPRINGFIELD -- In his most direct attack so far, U.S. Senate candidate Alexi Giannoulias is launching a television ad that accuses Republican rival Mark Kirk of lying repeatedly while backing policies that have hurt the nation's economy. The ad, entitled "Unfit," includes snippets of news and talk show hosts talking about incorrect statements Kirk has made. "One lie after another, after a... <read more> -
August 10, 2010
Amtrak: Ridership on Chicago-St. Louis line is up
Peoria Journal Star
CHICAGO -- Amtrak says ridership on its rail line between Chicago and St. Louis is up 11 percent over the last fiscal year. Amtrak says that from October 2009 through July, more than a half-million passengers have taken the route. The Chicago-St. Louis route is one of the rail line's most popular, and ridership has been steadily increasing. The Illinois Department of Transportation has... <read more> -
August 10, 2010
Wheat crop is an afterthought in Illinois Prices soar as Russian supply shrinks, but state produces puny crop
Peoria Journal Star
PEORIA -- While wheat prices skyrocket across the globe, Illinois is coming off one of its worst wheat growing years ever. Russia's worst drought in a century has pushed U.S. wheat prices to a two-year high, but Illinois farmers produced one of the smallest wheat crops in history. As one of the world's top three exporters of wheat (behind the United States and Canada), Russia announced a ... <read more> -
August 10, 2010
Luciano: Conviction may be ticket to Blago's dirt
Peoria Journal Star
It's a two-fer Tuesday. Blago second chance? My guess is, Rod Blagojevich isn't the only politician hoping he gets acquitted. Think Blago can't slip out of his legal noose? Ask O.J. Simpson about slam-dunk prosecutions. If acquitted, he likely would never discuss anything new about the case. He wouldn't want to give authorities fresh fodder for new charges. But if convicted, he has ... <read more> -
August 10, 2010
Our View: Quinn should quit campaigning on state's dime
Peoria Journal Star
Between Friday morning and Sunday morning, Gov. Pat Quinn had leapfrogged in taxpayer-funded airplanes from Chicago to Rockford to Moline to Chicago to Champaign to Marion to Bloomington to Chicago. Must have been one doozy of a crisis to require our governor to bop around Illinois like that, eh? That largely depends on whether you consider it official gubernatorial business to promote the 1... <read more>