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It’s Tuesday. Temperatures could rise above 40 degrees. Before you bask in the glow of these relatively mild conditions, catch up with these headlines from WTTW News.
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Chicago voting booths are pictured in a 2023 file photo. (Michael Izquierdo / WTTW News)
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President Donald Trump is renewing his unfounded claims of widespread voter fraud, maintaining the 2020 presidential election was rigged by Democrats and he is the rightful winner. In a recent escalation, the president called for Republicans to “take over” voting in 15 states — although he did not specify which states — in a bid to nationalize American elections.
States and municipalities conduct their own elections, which is explicitly stated in the Constitution, with some involvement from the legislative branch.
State-run elections are not only constitutional canon, but also a matter of national security.
“There are about 8,000 (voting) jurisdictions in the country,” said Jacob Braun, executive director of the Cyber Policy Initiative at the University of Chicago. “It’s really hard to claim that one party stole an election if both parties are administering elections in 8,000 jurisdictions across the country. Separately, it’s really hard for one entity to come in and wholly hack the entire election infrastructure for one candidate when you’ve got 8,000 little jurisdictions around the country that are administering these elections.”
Some backstory:
The Trump administration is pushing states to hand over their full voter rolls, or list of actively registered voters. The administration has sued more than 20 states and Washington, D.C., in an attempt to secure the sensitive information, according to the Brennan Center for Justice at New York University School of Law.
These latest comments related to election integrity come after an FBI raid on an election center in the Atlanta metro area, as well as the seizure of voting machines in Puerto Rico, with officials citing concerns over Venezuelan interference.
A probe found no evidence of such interference.
Since the raid in Georgia, Fulton County has legally challenged the administration’s move, motioning for the return of its 2020 election ballots. University of Illinois Chicago School of Law professor Hugh Mundy suspects the administration’s recent actions are less about safeguarding voting and more so an effort to “undermine public trust in the integrity of elections.”
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(WTTW News)
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Chicago taxpayers should pay $16.6 million to a man who spent 13 years in prison after he was framed by a disgraced former Chicago police detective for a 1991 murder, city lawyers recommended.
Demetrius Johnson was 15 years old when he was convicted and sentenced to 25 years in prison after being investigated by Reynaldo Guevara, a former Chicago police detective accused of routinely framing suspects.
The proposed settlement is set to be considered Wednesday by the City Council’s Finance Committee. A final vote by the City Council could come on Feb. 18.
It is one of four lawsuits naming Guevara that city lawyers have recommended settling that the Finance Committee will consider resolving on Wednesday at a cost of $29.2 million. If all four are approved, it would bring the number of resolved lawsuits naming Guevara up to 13 for a total cost of approximately $141.5 million to Chicago taxpayers. The lawsuits are among 44 still pending against Guevara and the city.
Here are the other three:
$6.95 million to Angel Diaz, a man who spent 15 years in prison after he was framed by Guevara. He was 21 when he was convicted and sentenced to 44 years in prison for a 1995 murder.
$4.85 million to Ariel Gomez, a man who spent 20 years in prison after he was framed by Guevara. He was 17 when he was convicted and sentenced to 35 years in prison for a 1997 murder.
$800,000 to William Negron, a man who spent 23 years in prison after he was framed by Guevara. He was 17 when he was convicted and sentenced to life in prison for a 1994 murder.
More settlements:
City lawyers also recommended that taxpayers should pay $8.25 million to the family of a woman, Dominga Flores Gomez, who was struck and killed by a driver being chased by Chicago police in 2022. It's the latest multimillion-dollar settlement prompted by a police pursuit that violated department policy.
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(WTTW News)
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As turmoil continues to swirl around the city’s finances, a push by critics of Mayor Brandon Johnson to put Chicago’s top financial officials on the hot seat fizzled Monday.
The leaders of the effort to craft a $16.6 billion spending plan over Johnson’s objections demanded that the chief financial officer, budget director and treasurer explain why the city had paid just $130 million more than required into the city’s underfunded pension funds, when the spending plan set aside a total of $259.6 million in extra cash for the city’s pension funds.
Johnson’s initial proposal called for the city to pay just $120.8 million more than required to the city’s four pension funds in 2026, citing the city’s financial woes. That drew intense pushback from alderpeople concerned it would lead to a second consecutive credit rating downgrade, making it more expensive for the city to borrow the funds it needs to operate.
When the Johnson administration announced last month that it had only paid half of what was required by the budget, which Johnson allowed to take effect without his signature, the leaders of the opposition demanded answers and suggested to reporters that the mayor had defied the will of the City Council.
But acting Chief Financial Officer Steven Mahr, Budget Director Annette Guzman and Treasurer Michael Belsky told the Finance Committee that the city simply couldn’t afford to make the payment since Cook County was months late in sending hundreds of millions in property tax revenue to the city.
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More From WTTW News:
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Back in the Day: February 10, 1851 - Illinois Central Railroad Chartered
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The 19th century in the United States was marked by the wide network of railroads constructed across the country. The first railroad to hit the city was the Galena and Chicago Union Railroad, which was chartered in 1836 and completed in 1848. Another critical piece of transportation infrastructure, the Illinois Central Railroad, which would connect Chicago with the Gulf of Mexico, was established on this day 175 years ago. On Feb. 10, 1851, Illinois Gov. Augustus French signed into law legislation to charter the Illinois Central Railroad. Construction of the main line was completed in 1856. It was 700 miles long and became the longest railroad in the United States, being twice as
vast as any other track. Still in service today, the line has expanded to include branches linking western states like Iowa, Nebraska, Minnesota and South Dakota.
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This Week’s Staff Recommendations
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Every Tuesday, WTTW News staffers highlight their favorite things about Chicago. This week, it’s video producer Nicole Cardos on her favorite Polish markets across the city.
Nicole Cardos: My pride for my Polish heritage reached a new high in mid-January.
It was during Jessie Buckley’s acceptance speech for a Golden Globe for her performance in “Hamnet,” when she thanked the film’s Polish key grip, Tomasz "Tomek" Sternicki, for the soup he cooked and served on set.
If the shout-out was unremarkable for some viewers, that’s because they may not understand how seriously Polish natives, like my mom, take their soup game. Thanks to Buckley, that fact was shared during one of Hollywood’s biggest nights.
So for this week’s recommendations, I’m sharing some of my family’s favorite Chicago-area Polish markets and a suggested soup (or two) to buy from each store’s ready-to-eat counter, because what better time than winter in Chicago to explore some soul-soothing dishes?
Deli 4 You Market
The grocery store sells Polish shelf-stable goods, ready-to-eat dishes, bread, desserts, and deli meats and cheeses at five locations across the northwest and southwest suburbs. Suggested soup: barszcz czerwony (red beetroot soup) or krupnik (barley soup). Multiple locations.
Montrose Market
Expect to find Polish staples plus helpful guidance from deli counter staff on what kind of Polish sausage to buy for your next bonfire. Suggested soup: zupa ogórkowa (dill pickle soup) or bigos (hunter’s stew). Multiple locations.
Andy’s Deli
A family-owned meat company with several imported dry and frozen goods, like pierogi, and ready-to-eat foods. Suggested soup: zupa gulaszowa (goulash, which is what Sternicki cooked on the set of “Hamnet”) or zupa grochowa (split pea soup). 5442 N. Milwaukee Ave.
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What's your ideal date night in Chicago?
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Email DailyChicagoan@wttw.com with your responses and your answers might be published.
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Newsletter Producer: Josh Terry
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