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Chicago Tribune
a day ago
- Politics
- Chicago Tribune
The Tribune's Quotes of the Week quiz for June 7
Happy June, quotes readers! It was a tense and smoggy week in Chicago. Immigration advocates were alerted Wednesday of people being detained at a U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement office on the Near South Side. Organizers and several aldermen went to protest, and several of them clashed with federal agents. Now, City Council members plan to have a hearing to look into the Chicago Police Department's response to the demonstration. Local immigration advocates also plan to challenge President Donald Trump's travel ban that bars or restricts travelers from 19 countries. The U.S. president spoke with several world leaders this week. After a call with Chinese leader Xi Jinping, Trump said the two countries will continue their trade talks. During their phone call Wednesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin told the president that he would respond to Ukraine's recent drone attacks on a Russian airfield. And in a meeting with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, Trump suggested that pursuing peace in eastern Europe is not the best path forward right now. Amidst all of this, the relationship between the president and his former close adviser Elon Musk came to a bitter end as the two exchanged harsh words on social media, and Trump threatened to cut Starlink and SpaceX's government contracts. The Trump administration is also investigating former President Joe Biden's use of an autopen to sign pardons and other documents. Meanwhile in Chicago, Mayor Brandon Johnson pushed aldermen to add a city grocery tax as the long-established state grocery levy expires. A jury found Crosetti Brand guilty of first-degree murder in the slaying of Jayden Perkins, the 11-year-old killed in a brutal 2024 attack as he tried to protect his pregnant mother. And Chicago police determined that Officer Krystal Rivera, a mother and four-year veteran of the force, was mistakenly shot and killed by a fellow cop during a confrontation with an armed suspect Thursday in the Chatham neighborhood. In Springfield, Illinois lawmakers voted to pass the state budget. The $55 billion spending plan was balanced with a combination of spending cuts and an estimated $800 million in tax increases, including hikes on tobacco products, vaping and online sportsbooks. The passage of the budget closed out a legislative session with mixed results for Gov. JB Pritzker. Jerry Reinsdorf is selling the Chicago White Sox — just not this year. On Thursday, the team announced Reinsdorf and billionaire Justin Ishbia reached a long-term investment agreement for Ishbia to obtain a controlling interest in the team by 2029 at the earliest. In other sports news, the Chicago Fire are privately financing a $650 million soccer stadium at The 78, the Chicago Sports Network is finally broadcasting on Comcast and the Chicago Sky are taking on the Indiana Fever this weekend in the first professional women's basketball game played at the United Center. But fans hoping to catch another matchup between Angel Reese and Caitlin Clark will have to wait: The 2024 WNBA rookie of the year is out for a quadriceps strain. Though the forecast looks nice, you may consider spending some time indoors this weekend. Smoke from Canadian wildfires is blanketing Chicago, with the city's air quality at times ranked the worst in the U.S. That's it for the news! Test your knowledge of who said what with the Tribune's Quotes of the Week quiz from June 1 to 7. Missed last week? You can find it here or check out our past editions of Quotes of the Week.
Chicago Tribune
3 days ago
- Politics
- Chicago Tribune
Local officials, protesters clash with ICE outside office over detentions in growing escalation over Trump's immigration tactics
In another sign of escalating tension over President Donald Trump's immigration policies, community organizers, protesters and several Chicago aldermen clashed with federal agents Wednesday as they detained immigrants outside a U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement office on the Near South Side. The office in the 2200 block of South Michigan Avenue operates the Intensive Supervision Appearance Program, or ISAP, which is run by ICE. The program utilizes technology, such as ankle monitors, as an alternative to detention, providing enhanced supervision for individuals in immigration proceedings who haven't been detained. Organizers were first alerted of ICE activity when Yolanda Chavez, a member of Organized Communities Against Deportations, went into the office for a check-in Wednesday morning and didn't come out for hours. The organization quickly mobilized supporters outside, said Antonio Gutierrez, president of the is from Honduras and has been in the United States for 10 years, Gutierrez said. She has a child and was in asylum proceedings, he added. Gutierrez hasn't heard from her since she went in.'This is only the beginning,' he Wednesday afternoon, elected officials, including Aldermen Anthony Quezada, 35th, Byron Sigcho-Lopez, 25th, and Rossana Rodriguez-Sanchez, 33rd, joined the growing number of people. Quezada and Rodriguez-Sanchez sat down in front of a white van as it attempted to enter the office parking lot. The vans drove away, and then federal immigration officers wearing sunglasses and face coverings suddenly arrived in a large group and began to jostle and push the approximately 30 people who were there. Sigcho-Lopez told the Tribune that he, Rodriguez-Sanchez and Quezada were attempting to form a human chain as federal agents entered the building and pushed Quezada to the ground. 'We were trying to hold arms,' Sigcho-Lopez said. 'These ICE agents came in with batons, and they came hard. They stomped into the building, they shoved Alderman Quezada to the ground, pushed the rest of us, stepped on everybody, threatened everybody. This is the Gestapo.' Sigcho-Lopez said he saw Quezada 'shaking' afterward, and Rodriguez-Sanchez texted the Tribune that she was 'bruised but okay' after being 'thrown around a lot.' 'This is a really sad day for the city. We will not allow this to happen again,' Sigcho-Lopez said. Police were notified of the growing protest and showed up at the scene to 'ensure the safety of all involved, including those exercising their First Amendment rights,' said Tom Ahern, a Chicago police spokesman. No arrests were made, police clash between Chicago community members and federal immigration agents is representative of a growing wave of grassroots resistance and pro-immigrant groups that are challenging ICE operations across the country. Residents and advocates are mobilizing rapidly to report ICE sightings, disrupt arrests and show up in force at immigration court did not say how many people were detained Wednesday. The city and organizations that work against federal deportation efforts estimated the number to be more than 10, with whom they have lost contact. 'Those arrested had executable final orders of removal by an immigration judge and had not complied with that order,' an ICE spokesman said in a statement. Clashes between ICE and protesters erupted in San Diego last week and in Minneapolis this week, when residents learned that ICE agents were conducting raids at local restaurants. In May, protests erupted outside immigration courts in San Francisco, New York and Arizona when advocates learned ICE would be detaining certain migrants after their hearings. On Michigan Avenue on Wednesday, after ICE officials got into shiny black SUVs and trucks and drove away, Gerardo Perez, 23, stood outside the office with his family. His mother was taken, he said. They live in Rogers Park, and he has six siblings. She had been here for close to 40 years.'It's just an act of racism,' he said as he got into a car. 'This is nobody's land.' 'They are destroying families because they know they can,' said Rodriguez-Sanchez, 33rd, at a hastily organized news conference afterward. 'This is a moment of solidarity. ' The more recent aggressive tactics from ICE have had a chilling effect across Chicago, with people opting out of work, church services, doctor appointments and school. Now, immigration attorneys and advocates are reporting that people aren't showing up for court hearings. Lawyers said the Trump administration appears to be coordinating efforts to dismiss cases of individuals in the U.S. who have been in the country for less than two years, so that federal agents can immediately detain them, potentially for an expedited removal order. Immigration officials confirmed to the Tribune that Chicago's courtrooms will also be an epicenter for the detentions. 'Most aliens who illegally entered the United States within the past two years are subject to expedited removals,' a statement from Department of Homeland Security, Secretary Kristi Noem said. 'ICE is now following the law and placing these illegal aliens in expedited removal, as they always should have been.' That means that, as attorneys and advocates suspected, ICE agents will be targeting migrants who have been in the country less than two years by dismissing their case during the hearing and arresting them afterward. Unless migrants have 'a valid credible fear claim, they will continue in immigration proceedings,' the DHS statement says. 'But if no valid claim is found, aliens will be subject to a swift deportation.' According to immigration experts and lawyers in the Chicago area, the move is another strategy to limit the migrants' ability to present their case before a judge, forcing them to leave the country instead. Reports of arrests in Chicago's immigration court surfaced in mid-May when several attorneys reported seeing ICE agents roaming the courtrooms with a list in hand, followed by a series of arrests. 'For many families trying to 'do it the legal way' and dutifully attending their court dates, they expect a normal check-in that brings them closer to stability. Instead, Trump and Noem are weaponizing a moment of hopeful anticipation to terrorize our communities further. Their vile actions show just how little they respect our courts, due process, our rights, and laws,' said U.S. Rep. Delia Ramirez, who sent a letter to ICE demanding answers about the arrest made at Chicago's immigration courts. Ramirez also urged other members of Congress to to demand answers from the administration. Because of the lack of transparency from DHS and other immigration agencies, attorneys can offer limited help, depending on people's cases, said Azadeh Erfani, policy director of the National Immigrant Justice Center. 'They are boxing them in: you will get deported if you show up to your hearing as mandated by law, but you will also get deported if you don't show up to your hearing,' said Erendira Rendon, vice president of immigrant justice at the Resurrection Project, a nonprofit organization that provides legal services to immigrants in need. Over the last week, reports of ICE agents in some of Chicago's predominantly Latino neighborhoods spread rapidly. When neighbors noticed unfamiliar cars on the corner of Troy and 27th streets, in Little Village at around 8 a.m. Tuesday, they quickly contacted their local rapid response team and their aldermen, who confirmed they were ICE agents. Members of the rapid response team, including members of La Villita Se Defiende, which is made up of area residents, approached the agents and patrolled the area until the agents left without making any arrests, according to officials. '(The terrorizing of ICE in our communities) needs to stop, but I fear it won't,' said Ald. Mike Rodriguez, 25th Ward. 'We need to work like hell to protect people and to resist until we get this person (Trump) out of office.' Though the sighting of ICE were just outside his ward, Rodriguez said his office is vigilant and ready to respond when they are notified of immigration officials in the neighborhood 'to make sure people's rights are preserved.' In a Wednesday evening statement, Mayor Brandon Johnson said his office is 'reviewing' the clash, which he described as an 'assault' by federal authorities. 'Mayor Johnson condemns the reckless and dangerous escalation by ICE agents this afternoon in the South Loop,' he wrote. 'Chicagoans have the right to protest the separation of family members by federal immigration enforcement. Federal agents should never be allowed to come into our city and assault elected officials or any Chicagoan.' In Pilsen, however, the community remains alert after ICE, in conjunction with the FBI, arrested two residents who work at a local business near the 1800 block of South Carpenter Street. In both instances, the agents failed to properly identify themselves or present arrest warrants, according to Sigcho Lopez and local rapid response teams. The Pilsen Migra Watch team reported that one of the arrests took place in the private residential area above the local business, which federal agents are not allowed to enter without a warrant signed by a judge.
Yahoo
08-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Puppy-Killer Noem Trolled Over Latest ICE ‘Publicity Stunt'
Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker on Wednesday made it clear that Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem is not welcome in his state. The comments, in which he mocked Noem's admitted dog-killing ways, came after she slammed the state's sanctuary status in a press conference. The enactment of Illinois' TRUST Act, the Way Forward Act, the Welcoming City Act, and a Cook County ordinance, limits how local authorities can aid U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement (ICE) agents in federal immigration enforcement actions. Noem claimed that 'people are dying every day' because of such policies. 'People are evading justice,' Noem said during the conference, which was held near a street corner in downtown Springfield, reported the Chicago Tribune. Noem further alleged that Pritzker was 'violating the Constitution' by not cooperating with the federal government. 'Governors like JB Pritzker don't care if gangbangers, murderers, rapists and pedophiles roam free in his state,' she said. Gov. JB Pritzker is a battle-tested Democrat known for his thick skin and bloated bank account. / Chicago Tribune / TNS However, Pritzker wasted no time throwing such allegations back in her face. Ahead of her visit, Pritzker mocked Noem's dog-killing ways in a statement urging 'all pet owners in the region to make sure all of your beloved animals are under watchful protection.' The statement added, 'Despite the Trump Administration being in office for more than 100 days and falsely accusing Illinois of not following federal and state law, Secretary Noem and her team does not communicate with the State of Illinois and has not asked for support or coordination to enforce immigration laws,' Pritzker followed the press conference with another statement skewering Noem's actions as attention-seeking, The Hill reported. 'Trump-Noem publicity stunts do not make our communities safer or our immigration system smarter. Illinois doesn't need to abuse power or ignore the Constitution to keep our people safe,' said Pritzker. 'Like the millions of Americans asking for sensible, humane immigration reform, I encourage the Secretary to spend less time performing for Fox News and more time protecting the Homeland.' Noem's press conference came as her 'real ID' deadline went into effect, requiring travelers to have a state-issued driver's license or ID card meeting security requirements. But many travelers reported that the enforcement appeared to be mostly superficial. In Illinois, Pritzker also reminded Noem that she was visiting the state during Latino Unity Day. 'Secretary Noem must have not realized she was visiting during Latino Unity Day where we come together celebrate the vibrancy and diversity of our community,' Pritzker said. 'Today, Secretary Noem was met by a force stronger than her: the people of Illinois.'
Yahoo
07-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
In Illinois, Noem blasts state's sanctuary laws, prompting sarcastic response from Pritzker
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WTVO) — During a visit Wednesday at the Illinois Capitol, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem blasted the state's sanctuary laws aimed at hindering federal immigration efforts, prompting a sarcastic response from Gov. JB Pritzker. At a press conference, Noem called Illinois's sanctuary policies for illegal immigrants a safety concern, claiming Illinois doesn't protect its citizens. 'This governor has bragged about Illinois being a firewall against President Trump's immigration enforcement agenda, and it's very clear he's violating the Constitution of the United States because it is a federal law that the federal government and the president set to enforce immigration policy,' she said at a press conference. Illinois prevents local authorities from cooperating with U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement (ICE) by way of the TRUST Act, the Way Forward Act, the Welcoming City Act, and a Cook County ordinance. 'I'm calling on Gov. Pritzker and all the other leaders of this state to abandon their dangerous sanctuary policies,' she added. 'I'm thankful for all the state leaders that are standing behind me who agree as well. They have been fighting an uphill battle with this governor, and I'm proud of them that they're standing here with us today and with these angel families, and saying enough is enough. We have to change as a state.' The night prior, Pritzker's office issued statement to the media, saying, 'Despite the Trump Administration being in office for more than 100 days and falsely accusing Illinois of not following federal and state law, Secretary Noem and her team does not communicate with the State of Illinois and has not asked for support or coordination to enforce immigration laws.' 'We would urge all pet owners in the region to make sure all of your beloved animals are under watchful protection while the Secretary is in the region,' Pritzker's office wrote, apparently a reference to a anecdote in her book, 'No Going Back: The Truth on What's Wrong with Politics and How We Move America Forward,' about killing a dog decades prior. On Wednesday, following Noem's press conference, Pritzker's office issued a press release in both English and Spanish, saying, 'Unlike Donald Trump and Kristi Noem, Illinois follows the law. The Trump Administration is violating the United States Constitution, denying people due process, and disappearing law-abiding neighbors – including children who are U.S. citizens. Yet, they are taking no real action to promote public safety and deport violent criminals within the clear and defined legal process.' Sen. Dave Syverson (R-Cherry Valley) weighed in on Noem's visit, saying, 'A visit by the Homeland Security Secretary sends a pretty strong message to the Pritzker Administration. The federal government is shining a national light on what many Illinoisans already know. Gov. JB Pritzker's sanctuary state policies are reckless, dangerous, and putting lives at risk. He has repeatedly proclaimed Illinois as the 'most welcoming state in the nation,' but has little to say about what it's costing taxpayers or how many violent offenders have slipped through the cracks as a result.' Meanwhile, Noem's visit to Springfield arrived on the same day that REAL ID requirements began at U.S. airports. Illinois Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias issued a statement criticizing Noem's messaging on the subject, saying, 'For months, Secretary Noem has been calling the May 7 date a 'deadline,' implying that Americans must have a 'REAL ID' or they cannot board any U.S.-based flights without a valid passport, which has sent people scrambling to get one ahead of [Wednesday],' Giannoulias said. 'For the past several months, this has resulted in long lines, frustration and – in many cases – pure panic among residents.' 'Instead of flying across the country to perform campaign-style political stunts designed to traumatize people and promote herself, she should do her damn job,' Giannoulias said. Pritzker has agreed to testify before a Congressional committee in defense of the state's sanctuary laws on June 12th, alongside Democratic Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and New York Mayor Kathy Hochul. The U.S. Department of Justice filed a lawsuit against Illinois, alleging the state and the city of Chicago interfere with federal immigration enforcement by violating the Supremacy Clause of the U.S. Constitution. 'Illinois state and local officers do not honor ICE detainers, including by allowing ICE access to aliens in their facilities – even in otherwise public areas of those facilities – for the purpose of safely transferring aliens into federal custody,' the statement reads. 'While ICE is undertaking re-apprehension efforts, the alien remains at-large in the community and free to commit further crimes or otherwise threaten public safety,' the DOJ said. President Donald Trump said his administration was taking efforts to withhold federal funding from cities and states with policies that limit local law enforcement from cooperating with federal authorities on some immigration matters. Pritzker has said that violent noncitizens 'should be imprisoned and, or if they're illegal, undocumented in this country and they are committing violent crimes they should be deported and turned over to authorities in their countries.' 'We should be protecting residents of the state of Illinois, even if they're undocumented residents, and providing a path to citizenship,' Pritzker added. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to MyStateline | WTVO News, Weather and Sports.
Yahoo
06-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Blue state Republican calls on county sheriffs to defy sanctuary law, Dem governor rumored for 2028 run
EXCLUSIVE — Rep. Mary Miller, R-Ill., is calling on sheriffs in her state to defy Democratic Gov. J.B. Pritzker and the state's sanctuary laws and instead uphold federal immigration law. Miller said the state's sanctuary policies have transformed the Land of Lincoln into a "cesspool of crime and drugs." She is calling on sheriffs in the state to "act now" and ignore Pritzker's attempts to circumvent President Donald Trump on immigration law and instead work directly with U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement (ICE) on deportations. This comes as Pritzker and Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson, also a Democrat, have emerged as some of the nation's leading resistance voices against the Trump administration, especially when it comes to his crackdown on illegal immigration. The Democratic-majority Illinois legislature passed the TRUST Act in 2017, which limits local law enforcement's ability to cooperate with ICE and bars them from enforcing immigration law. Illegal Immigrant Released By Biden Admin Pleads Not Guilty To Murder Of Georgia Grandmother Pritzker, who is seen as a possible 2028 presidential candidate, has continued to fight the administration, even denouncing Trump as an "authoritarian" and calling for mass protests to disrupt the president's agenda, saying Republicans "cannot know a moment of peace." Read On The Fox News App The Democratic governor has also vowed to resist the administration's immigration agenda and has said that Trump and border czar Tom Homan are "the ones who are threatening people." ICE has said that state and local policies inhibiting law enforcement from cooperating with ICE endangers federal agents and communities by allowing public safety threats to walk free. The Trump Department of Justice (DOJ) has filed legal charges against Pritzker, Johnson and several other Chicago officials for refusing to honor ICE detainers, which the department said, "obstructs ICE from assuming custody of an alien in a safe and controlled manner." In its filing, the DOJ said that "when a detainer is not honored or an alien is released from a non-federal facility without notification or transfer to ICE, ICE must conduct investigations and perform targeted enforcement actions to re-apprehend the alien. And while ICE is undertaking re-apprehension efforts, the alien remains at-large in the community and free to commit further crimes or otherwise threaten public safety." Dhs Unleashes Possible Money-saving Measure For Illegal Aliens To Self-deport: 'Safest Option' US Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents walk down a street during a multi-agency, targeted enforcement operation in Chicago on Sunday, Jan. 26, 2025. Though police departments are typically under the direct control of city officials, sheriffs are elected by the people they serve and often have more leeway to enforce the law unimpeded by political pressure. As such, Miller is urging sheriffs across the state to stand against Pritzker and state authorities and enforce immigration law. "I call on every local sheriff in Illinois to defy these dangerous directives, cooperate with ICE, and support President Trump's deportation efforts," Miller said to Fox News Digital. She said that "Pritzker's sanctuary state policies have transformed Illinois into a cesspool of crime and drugs brought by the illegals he is actively resettling." Father Whose Son Died From Fentanyl Warns Overdoses 'Can Happen To Anyone' As States Fight Deadly Crisis U.S. Representative Mary Miller (R-IL) gives remarks after receiving an endorsement during a Save America Rally with then-former President Donald Trump at the Adams County Fairgrounds on June 25, 2022 in Mendon, Illinois. "Our communities are being overwhelmed, innocent girls are being raped, and Americans are being ruthlessly murdered," she added. "These are the tragic consequences of his failed leadership." "We must act now before one more innocent American life is lost or harmed," she said. Pritzker's office did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment. Original article source: Blue state Republican calls on county sheriffs to defy sanctuary law, Dem governor rumored for 2028 run
