Daywatch: A road trip across Route 66
Good morning, Chicago.
It's that time of year when we look for any excuse to spend time outside. A day at the beach. A walk through the park. A road trip with the windows down.
Two members of our newsroom are heading out west for that last option, one that will span eight states, three time zones and more than 2,000 miles.
Tribune reporter Jonathan Bullington and photojournalist E. Jason Wambsgans set out next week to travel the length of Route 66 ahead of the highway's centennial next year.
In pursuit of the unknown, they're starting the journey at the farthest point from home, in Santa Monica, and working their way back to Chicago. Have a recommendation of a favorite spot along Route 66? Share it with us.
The pair will share dispatches from their travels several times each week from the road. Follow along here.
And here are the top stories you need to know to start your day, including: what warm-weather destinations United Airlines is expanding service to, when tickets go on sale for the celebration of Pope Leo XIV at Rate Field and Chonkosauraus rises again from the Chicago River.
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President Donald Trump has audaciously claimed virtually unlimited power to bypass Congress and impose sweeping taxes on foreign products.
Now a federal court has thrown a roadblock in his path.
A day after Donald Trump's stunning decision to commute the federal life sentence of Larry Hoover, lawyers for the Chicago-born Gangster Disciples founder were singing the president's praises while Chicago's new FBI boss told the Tribune that Hoover 'deserves to be in prison.'
After months of negotiations amid warnings of potentially drastic service cuts, Illinois lawmakers yesterday introduced a bill they said addresses the expected $771 million financial shortfall for Chicago-area public transit with proposals that include a 50-cent hike on Illinois toll roads and an additional tax on ride-sharing services.
United Airlines announced this morning that it will have expanded service to several warm-weather destinations in the U.S., Latin America and the Caribbean from Chicago, just as temperatures start their inevitable drop here.
Temperatures may still be hovering in the 60s, but one more sure sign of summer's arrival has graced Chicago: Chonkosaurus has risen.
The celebration, set for June 14 at the White Sox's Rate Field in Bridgeport, is open to all. Pope Leo XIV, a native of the Chicago area and the first American to lead the world's Catholics in the church's history, will not be at the event but will address 'the young people of the world' in a video message, according to the archdiocese's invitation.
Candace Parker will be enshrined at Wintrust Arena this summer.
The Chicago Sky will retire Parker's No. 3 jersey on Aug. 25 before a game against the Las Vegas Aces. Parker, who grew up in Naperville, is the first former Sky player to have her jersey retired, an honor that reflects her stature in the history of Illinois women's basketball as much as her impact on the franchise.
Former Chicago Blackhawks captain and three-time Stanley Cup champion Jonathan Toews is eyeing a return to the NHL in the fall, according to a new report.
This summer's concert slate points to a transition that continues to slowly unfold locally and around the country. Shying away from big festivals, artists are opting for standalone tours or participating in smaller, manageable package bills.
That's welcome news for music lovers who prefer the equivalent of a savory main course to a prix-fixe buffet. And great for anyone looking to catch performers in more intimate environments where headliners can stretch out with a dedicated show. In the next few months, Chicagoans have no shortage of first-rate options in smaller venues purpose-built for music — and, in most cases, at prices that remain below the three-figure threshold.
Here are 10 such stops that should be on your shortlist.
Right now at the movies, Tom Cruise, a Hawaiian island dweller and a genetic lab experiment from space are simultaneously agitating and reassuring millions with tales of apocalypse-thwarting derring-do ('Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning') and a loving family in challenging circumstances ('Lilo & Stitch'). It's good news for theater owners, and the perpetually challenged moviegoing tradition.
This is good news, too: We have a couple of eccentric film festivals opening this week in Chicago, designed to broaden our options and reexamine some movies past, launching the new month in this nervous breakdown of a year with some striking emotional/visual extremes, careening from darkness to giddy intensity in multiple genres.
Also, around the area this weekend, a tour of R&B divas at the United Center and a plant giveaway at the Chicago Botanic Garden.
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UPI
14 minutes ago
- UPI
Trump issues travel ban from 12 countries; 7 nations restricted
President Donald Trump holds a press conference in the Oval Office at the White House on Friday. Onv Wednesday, he issued a travel ban on 12 countries and limited ones for seven others. Photo by Francis Chung/UPI | License Photo June 4 (UPI) -- President Donald Trump on Wednesday issued a proclamation to "fully restrict and limit" entry of people from 12 foreign countries starting at 12:01 EDT Monday. Citing national security concerns, Trump issued the ban on nationals from Afghanistan, Burma, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen. Also, he partially restricted and limited entry from seven countries: Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan and Venezuela. Of the 19 named nations, 10 are in Africa. "These restrictions distinguish between, but apply to both, the entry of immigrants and nonimmigrants," the order states about the two designations," the proclamation reads. There are exceptions for lawful permanent residents, existing visa holders, certain visa categories and individuals whose entry serves US national interests. Later Wednesday, he posted a video on Truth Social announcing the bans. "The list is subject to revision based on whether material improvements are made," Trump said. "And likewise new countries can be added as threats emerge around the world, but we will not allow people to enter our country who wish to do us harm and nothing will stop us from keeping America safe." The proclamation reads: "As President, I must act to protect the national security and national interest of the United States and its people. I remain committed to engaging with those countries willing to cooperate to improve information-sharing and identity-management procedures, and to address both terrorism-related and public-safety risks. Nationals of some countries also pose significant risks of overstaying their visas in the United States, which increases burdens on immigration and law enforcement components of the United States, and often exacerbates other risks related to national security and public safety." White House deputy press secretary Abigail Jackson wrote on X: "President Trump is fulfilling his promise to protect Americans from dangerous foreign actors that want to come to our country and cause us harm. These commonsense restrictions are country-specific and include places that lack proper vetting, exhibit high visa overstay rates, or fail to share identity and threat information." On his first day in office on Jan. 20, Trump signed an executive order that it is the policy of the United States to "protect its citizens from aliens who intend to commit terrorist attacks, threaten our national security, espouse hateful ideology, or otherwise exploit the immigration laws for malevolent purposes." Secretary of State Marco Rubio was ordered to compile a list of countries "for which vetting and screening information is so deficient as to warrant a partial or full suspension on the admission of nationals from those countries." The proclamation said: "Some of the countries with inadequacies face significant challenges to reform efforts. Others have made important improvements to their protocols and procedures, and I commend them for these efforts. But until countries with identified inadequacies address them, members of my Cabinet have recommended certain conditional restrictions and limitations." CNN reported Trump decided to sign the proclamation after the antisemitic attack in Boulder, Colo., though the system didn't come to the United States from the restricted countries. Mohamed Sabry Soliman, 45, of Colorado Springs, has been charged with a federal hate crime and he is facing 16 state counts of attempted murder on Monday. Soliman, an Egyptian national who spent time in Kuwait, entered California in August 2022 on a B2 visa that expired in February 2023 and his asylum claim was pending. Alex Nowrasteh, who works for Cato Institute, a nonpartisan and independent public policy research organization, said the threat of foreign-born terrorists is rare. "A single terrorist from those countries murdered one person in an attack on US soil: Emanuel Kidega Samson from Sudan, who committed an attack motivated by anti-white animus in 2017," Nowrasteh wrote. The annual chance of being murdered by a terrorist from one of the banned countries from 1975 to the end of 2024 was about 1 in 13.9 billion per year." He also noted that travelers and immigrants from the 12 banned countries have a nationwide incarceration rate of 370 per 100,000 in 2023 for the 18-54 aged population, which 70 percent below that of native-born Americans. The data came from the U.S. Census and American Community Survey Data. During his first term, Trump banned travel by citizens of predominantly Muslim countries, including Iraq, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen. Amid legal challenges, it was modified and upheld by the Supreme Court in 2018. When President Joe Biden took office in 2021, he repealed it.
New York Times
28 minutes ago
- New York Times
Trump travel ban sparks World Cup questions – and more soccer issues
On Wednesday night, U.S. President Donald Trump signed a travel ban against twelve countries in a move he described as 'protecting the national security and national interest of the United States and its people'. The ban goes into effect on Monday, June 9, and it entails a ban against travel into the United States by citizens of Afghanistan, Burma, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, and Yemen. This ban relates to the entry of both immigrants and non-immigrants. Advertisement President Trump also imposed partial restrictions and limits on the entry of nationals from Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan, and Venezuela. From a soccer perspective, the news is particularly significant because FIFA are hosting two tournaments in the United States over the next thirteen months – first the FIFA Club World Cup, which will begin on June 14 and then the World Cup in 2026, which will be shared with Canada and Mexico. Iran has already qualified for the tournament, while several countries facing travel bans are in contention to qualify. Additionally, Concacaf is hosting the Gold Cup this summer in the United States, with Haiti one of the competing teams. There are also players from Sudan, Venezuela and Iran due to compete in the Club World Cup. The Athletic breaks down the instant questions that are raised by President Trump's travel ban. What will the impact be for national teams visiting the United States for the World Cup in 2026? The good news for FIFA is that the executive order contains an exemption for 'any athlete or member of an athletic team, including coaches, persons performing a necessary support role, and immediate relatives, traveling for the World Cup, Olympics, or other major sporting event as determined by the Secretary of State.' This would appear to suggest, therefore, that Iran, whose qualification has already been assured for the World Cup in 2026, will be able to send a team and support staff to compete at the tournament. However, players will not be able to bring friends and family who are Iranian nationals beyond 'immediate relatives.' Trump's executive order describes Iran as a' state sponsor of terrorism', adding that the state 'regularly fails to cooperate with the United States Government in identifying security risks'. Among the nations with full travel bans, Haiti is currently the best-placed team to qualify for the 2026 World Cup, having won its first two games in the second round of Concacaf's qualification process to sit second in its five-team group. The top two from each of the six groups of five progress into the third round – where 12 teams remain – and three nations are guaranteed access to the World Cup with an additional two Concacaf teams to enter into the inter-continental playoffs. Advertisement In Africa, Libya has an outside chance of making the World Cup, currently placed third in a group of six after six matches. The four-best runners-up from the ten African groups will enter into a play-off tournament to stand a chance of qualifying for the World Cup. Both Haiti and Libya would be in the same position as Iran, should they qualify, whereby they are permitted to attend as teams – but there does not appear to be an exception for nationals of those teams who might wish to travel to the tournament to support their country during the competition. Among the nations with partial travel bans, Venezuela is currently placed 7th in the South America qualification table, which would enter them into an inter-continental play-off. Cuba lies third in its five-team Concacaf group, with a game in hand on second-placed Bermuda after two games played. Sierra Leone is also third in group play in the CAF qualification phase to remain in with a chance of qualification. Will any teams be impacted at the Concacaf Gold Cup in the summer of 2025? The Gold Cup begins on June 14 and ends on July 6 this summer, with all matches except one due to be played in the United States. The only competing nation impacted by the travel ban is Haiti, an opponent of the USMNT in the group stage of the competition. Saudi Arabia and Trinidad and Tobago make up the four-team group. The exemption listed by President Trump's executive order refers to athletes and teams being allowed to 'travel for the World Cup, Olympics, or other major sporting event as determined by the Secretary of State.' The Gold Cup is not specified and therefore it must be determined by the Secretary of State Marco Rubio. The Athletic has contacted both Concacaf and the Department of State to seek clarity on the matter and to ask whether Haiti will be granted entry. President Trump's executive order cited overstay percentages on visas by Haitian citizens within the U.S. and claimed 'hundreds of thousands of illegal Haitian aliens flooded into the United States during the Biden Administration.' The order claimed that this 'harms American communities by creating acute risks of increased overstay rates, establishment of criminal networks, and other national security threats.' Advertisement What will the impact be for supporters who wish to watch these teams compete in the United States during the next year? While exemptions appear to have been made for athletes, teams and immediate relatives, further-reaching exemptions for supporters do not appear to be present in the executive order. Exemptions are made for nationals of designated countries who are traveling on government business, or NATO business, or those who are lawful permanent residents of the United States, as well as those who are dual citizens and traveling with a passport from the non-designated country. There will also be entry granted to Iranians on immigrant visas owing to ethnic or religious persecution in their home country. These exemptions aside, however, it appears that entry will be limited for nationals from those countries who face partial and full travel bans. Both Venezuela and Cuba for example have had temporary tourist visa access forbidden. It also appears that Haitians will be forbidden from entering the U.S. to support their team at the Gold Cup this summer or if they qualify for the World Cup next summer. What does this mean for the FIFA Club World Cup this summer? The 32 teams who will be competing in FIFA's revamped club competition this summer are not from any of the countries impacted by the travel ban. There are, however, some players who are potentially at risk of being affected. The exemption in the executive order, as explained above, states that allowances will be made for athletes and immediate relatives coming for the World Cup or 'other major sporting events', as determined by the Secretary of State. The Club World Cup is not specified in the document. The Athletic has reached out to both the Department of State and FIFA to ask whether anything has been formally communicated to designate the Club World Cup as a 'major event.' A quick browse of the squads offers up potential challenges. At the Abu Dhabi club Al-Ain, for example, is the Sudanese player Mohamed Awadalla and his country has seen all visas blocked – meaning he may require an exemption – while the Inter Milan Iranian forward Mehdi Taremi may also be in the same position. The Venezuelan trio of Matias Lacava, Salomon Rondon and Jefferson Savarino – at Ulsan, Pachuca and Botafogo respectively – may not require exemptions because the partial travel ban inflicted upon Venezuelan nationals does not extend to those seeking to come to the U.S. on the P-1 visa. This is used when an athlete seeks to come to the U.S. are part of a team at an internationally recognized level of performance. On Wednesday, as part of our report tracking FIFA's difficulties in filling stadiums for the Club World Cup, FIFA told The Athletic that supporters from more than 130 different countries had acquired tickets for this summer's tournament. We have now approached FIFA to ask whether any nationals from countries impacted by the travel ban have acquired tickets for the tournament, as well as if any exemptions will be made to enable them to enter the country, or if these supporters can otherwise expect refunds. Advertisement What have FIFA and the White House said previously about teams and fans being able to attend the World Cup? Back in 2017, before the U.S. secured the World Cup a year later, the FIFA President Gianni Infantino told reporters: 'It's obvious when it comes to FIFA competitions, any team, including the supporters and officials of that team, who qualify for a World Cup need to have access to the country, otherwise there is no World Cup.' Additionally, as part of the U.S.'s joint bid with Canada and Mexico to host the World Cup – dated May 2, 2018 – President Trump wrote to Infantino and said he was confident that 'all eligible athletes, officials and fans from all countries around the world would be able to enter the United States without discrimination.' The Athletic has approached the White House for comment. Earlier this year, Infantino said: 'America will welcome the world. Everyone who wants to come here to enjoy, to have fun and to celebrate the game, will be able to do that.' Infantino also claimed that the two FIFA tournaments over the next year would generate almost $50 billion in economic output for the U.S. The question, however, is whether repeated news cycles about a more stringent approach to entering the U.S. may dissuade global travelers from attending both the tournament this summer and next year's World Cup, leaving FIFA more reliant on a domestic audience and host cities at risk of falling short of their economic impact, as tourists are likelier to spend more money. Speaking about the World Cup, Vice President J.D. Vance last month said during a meeting of the White House's World Cup task force: 'Of course everyone is welcome to come and see this wonderful event. We want them to come, we want them to celebrate, we want them to watch the games. 'But when the time is up we want them to go home, otherwise they will have to talk to Secretary Noem,' he said, referring to Kristi Noem, the Secretary of Homeland Security.
Fox News
29 minutes ago
- Fox News
Trump orders Attorney General to investigate Biden's autopen use amid cognitive decline concerns
Print Close By Greg Wehner Published June 05, 2025 President Donald Trump called on Attorney General Pam Bondi to lead an investigation into whether certain individuals working for former President Joe Biden conspired to deceive the public about his mental state while also exercising his presidential responsibilities by using an autopen. In a memo on Wednesday, Trump said the president of the U.S. has a tremendous amount of power and responsibility through the signature. Not only can the signature turn words into laws of the land, but it also appoints individuals to some of the highest positions in government, creates or eliminates national policies and allows prisoners to go free. "In recent months, it has become increasingly apparent that former President Biden's aides abused the power of Presidential signatures through the use of an autopen to conceal Biden's cognitive decline and assert Article II authority," Trump wrote. "This conspiracy marks one of the most dangerous and concerning scandals in American history. The American public was purposefully shielded from discovering who wielded the executive power, all while Biden's signature was deployed across thousands of documents to effect radical policy shifts." He continued, saying Biden had suffered from "serious cognitive decline" for years, and the Department of Justice (DOJ) recently concluded that Biden should not stand trial, despite clear evidence he broke the law, because of his mental state. EXCLUSIVE: COMER HAILS DOJ'S BIDEN PROBE AS HOUSE INVESTIGATION HEATS UP "Biden's cognitive issues and apparent mental decline during his presidency were even 'worse' in private, and those closest to him 'tried to hide it' from the public," Trump said. "To do so, Biden's advisors during his years in office severely restricted his news conferences and media appearances, and they scripted his conversations with lawmakers, government officials, and donors, all to cover up his inability to discharge his duties." Still, during the Biden presidency, the White House issued over 1,200 Presidential documents, appointed 235 judges to the federal bench and issued more pardons and commutations than any administration in U.S. history, Trump said. The president wrote about Biden's decision just two days before Christmas 2024, to commute the sentences of 37 of the 40 most dangerous criminals on federal death row, including mass murderers and child killers. TRUMP SAYS BIDEN DIDN'T FAVOR HIS ADMIN'S LAX BORDER SECURITY POLICY, SUGGESTS AUTOPEN PLAYED A ROLE "Although the authority to take these executive actions, along with many others, is constitutionally committed to the President, there are serious doubts as to the decision-making process and even the degree of Biden's awareness of these actions being taken in his name," Trump wrote. "The vast majority of Biden's executive actions were signed using a mechanical signature pen, often called an autopen, as opposed to Biden's own hand. This was especially true of actions taken during the second half of his Presidency, when his cognitive decline had apparently become even more clear to those working most closely with him. "Given clear indications that President Biden lacked the capacity to exercise his Presidential authority, if his advisors secretly used the mechanical signature pen to conceal this incapacity, while taking radical executive actions all in his name, that would constitute an unconstitutional wielding of the power of the Presidency, a circumstance that would have implications for the legality and validity of numerous executive actions undertaken in Biden's name," he added. TRUMP HAS NOT DIRECTED ADMIN TO DECLASSIFY BIDEN DOCS ON HEALTH 'COVER-UP' The memo goes on to call for an investigation that addresses if certain individuals, who are not named in the document, conspired to deceive the American public about the former president's mental state and "unconstitutionally" exercised the president's authority and responsibilities. Specifically, Trump called on the attorney general's investigation to look at any activity that purposefully shielded the public from information about Biden's mental and physical health; any agreements between his aides to falsely deem recorded videos of Biden's cognitive ability as fake; and any agreements between Biden's aides to require false, public statements that elevated the president's capabilities. The investigation will also look at which policy documents the autopen was used for, including clemency grants, executive orders, and presidential memoranda, as well as who directed Biden's signature to be affixed to those documents. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP Trump said last week that he thinks Biden did not really agree with many of his administration's lax border security policies, instead suggesting that those surrounding the former president took advantage of his declining faculties and utilized the autopen to pass radical directives pertaining to the border. House Republicans, led by Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, launched an investigation earlier last month aimed at determining whether Biden, who was in declining health during the final months of his presidency, was mentally fit to authorize the use of the autopen. Comer said last week he was "open" to dragging Biden before the House to answer questions about the matter if necessary. Fox News Digital's Alec Schemmel contributed to this report. Print Close URL
