Starting Wednesday, Illinois residents will be able to use their iPhones to show their driver’s license at select airports, restaurants and bars.

Under a major digital shift that Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias cast on Tuesday as a long-promised modernization of government services, Illinois residents will be able to add their state driver’s license or state ID to their Apple Wallets. Mobile IDs will expand to Android users within the next few months or sometime next year, he said.

“Our goal has been simple: bring government into the 21st century, and meet people where they are,” Giannoulias said at an event in West Town that resembled the launch of a new iPhone as much as it did a state press conference. “Today, we take another major leap forward.”

Illinoisans will still have to carry physical IDs for law enforcement, such as when they are pulled over for speeding. But Apple Wallet IDs will be accepted at businesses that opt in, as well as at O’Hare and Midway international airports, and at TSA checkpoints at more than 250 airports nationwide, Giannoulias said.

The rollout will begin on Wednesday, according to Giannoulias’ office. Users will be able to add their state ID within the Wallet app by scanning their existing ID or driver’s license card with their phone and providing a selfie, the office said.

Users will be able to present their IDs by tapping their phone or watch, rather than fumbling through their wallets for a driver’s license or ID card, according to the office.

That change will limit the amount of information that bartenders, bouncers and cashiers can see when checking IDs. Rather than needing to see the entire document, businesses will be able to request just key verifications — for example, that a customer is older than 21 — and have customers tap their mobile ID to confirm that information without seeing an exact birthday or address, Giannoulias said.

Using a mobile ID will be optional and free, according to Giannoulias’ office.

On the business side, a mobile ID verifier app from the secretary of state’s office will also be available Wednesday, the office said.

The Illinois General Assembly last year approved legislation legalizing digital IDs. Giannoulias said at the time that eligibility for a mobile identification card would be the same as for the physical credential.

Digital IDs have been available for residents in other states in the U.S., but the update will make Illinois the largest state to offer mobile IDs widely to residents through Apple Wallet, according to a list from the Transportation Security Administration. More than a dozen states, including Colorado and Maryland, have offered some form of mobile IDs, according to the Transportation Security Administration, but some, including California, only have a limited program.

The American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois previously raised privacy and security concerns about the legislation allowing mobile IDs, such as the possibility that law enforcement would use them as a pretext to access a phone.

The rollout does not allow police to seize a user’s phone at will to access their mobile ID, nor does it allow law enforcement officers to accept mobile IDs, Giannoulias said.

In his first term as secretary of state and running for reelection, Giannoulias on Tuesday repeatedly framed the implementation as a win for his office. In addition to running for a second term next year, Giannoulias has reportedly been considering a bid for Chicago mayor in 2027.

Just minutes after the government event ended, Giannoulias’ campaign office sent out a fundraising pitch highlighting the change as “my most exciting day in office yet” and soliciting donations.

Asked about whether he’s still considering a campaign for Chicago mayor, Giannoulias didn’t deny it and pivoted back to the Apple Wallet driver’s licenses.

“I’m so focused on this. That’s the only thing I’m thinking about. And I’m – I’m not upset about the question, it’s my job. But I think in general, we need to rebuild trust in government, and we promised to do this when I ran for this office,” Giannoulias said. “Whether you’re a Democrat or Republican, you should be excited about today.”

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/11/18/illinois-mobile-drivers-licenses-announced/ 

Triton College in River Grove will compete for the national Aspen Institute’s 2027 Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence.

The prize is a top national award for community colleges and only the top 200 colleges in the nation are eligible to compete. Besides bragging rights, a win would mean a $1 million prize and recognition for student success at the two-year institution. That success includes retention, student program completion and bachelor’s degree attainment. Triton is one of 21 Illinois community colleges to be nominated and among 200 nationally.

For Triton, the Aspen recognition is a first.

“Being included in this group is a significant milestone,” said Triton College President Mary-Rita Moore. “It affirms the progress our students, faculty and staff have achieved together in improving completion, transfer and career outcomes while expanding equitable access to higher education.”

This is only the beginning of a much longer process. The top community college in the nation will be announced in the spring of 2027 following 20 months of investigation by the selection panel. Semifinalists will be announced in April and finalists will be named next summer.

Triton was founded in 1964 and Moore said since then, the college has kept focus improving itself for students.

“This recognition reflects years of intentional, college-wide work to improve access, completion, transfer and workforce outcomes for every student,” she said.

Community colleges are often first stops for high school graduates before going off to a four-year program, and they offer opportunities for continuing education for career changers and others looking to get into new careers or get ahead in existing careers.

Triton enrolls over 16,000 students each year and Moore said the school focuses on teaching skills in “high demand regional industries” like healthcare, manufacturing, education and public service. According to its website, the school offers more than 120 degree programs and certifications in a wide variety of areas.

Moore says the goal is to get students in a position to get employed. Those student outcomes are reflected in the Aspen recognition.

“For Triton, it acknowledges years of work to strengthen student outcomes, support first-generation learners and expand clear pathways leading directly to good jobs or further education,” Moore said. “This recognition also underscores the essential role community colleges play as engines of economic mobility and regional vitality. We view it as both an honor and a responsibility, to continue innovating, collaborating with employers, K–12 districts and universities, and ensuring that every student we serve can achieve lasting success.”

Triton was not alone, however, among Illinois community colleges. In total, 21 colleges in the state got included among the 200 candidates for the top spot nationally.

“The inclusion of these Illinois colleges among the top 200 underscores our statewide commitment to student success, equity and innovation,” said Illinois Community College Board Chair Sylvia Jenkins in a news release. “These institutions are making a real difference locally and nationally—this recognition affirms the value and impact of their work for students, employers and communities.”

Jesse Wright is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press. 

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/11/18/triton-college-aspen-award/ 

Emails Reveal Under Armor Urged Maryland To Buy Horse Farm After No Buyers – Will Gov. Moore Return Favor?

Tyler Durden
Tue, 11/18/2025 – 14:25

https://www.zerohedge.com/political/emails-reveal-kevin-plank-urged-maryland-buy-horse-farm-after-no-buyers-will-gov-moore 

Former Portage Mayor James Snyder asked for a new trial on his conviction for defrauding the IRS in federal court filings late last month. Federal prosecutors, in their response, said his request is untimely and without merit.

So goes the latest chapter in a saga that began nine years ago when Snyder was indicted on one count of defrauding the IRS and two counts of bribery, one involving towing contracts and the other involving garbage trucks.

A jury in U.S. District Court in Hammond found Snyder not guilty on the charge involving the towing contract, and convicted him twice on the garbage truck charge, a case that made its way to the U.S. Supreme Court, which deemed in June of last year that the $13,000 payment Snyder received over a garbage truck contract was a gratuity, not a bribe, because the payment came after the contract and not before. The case was remanded to the lower courts.

A jury convicted Snyder on the IRS charge, which involved his personal business and not his duties as mayor at the time, and that conviction has remained unchallenged.

Snyder was scheduled to go to trial for a third time on the charge involving the garbage truck contract, but prosecutors have said they would like to sentence Snyder for obstructing the IRS and forgo a third trial on his bribery charge.

Snyder, awaiting sentencing on the IRS conviction, which has been repeatedly pushed back, argued in an Oct. 31 filing that he wanted a new trial on the IRS charge because the information presented on the bribery charges could have improperly swayed the jury.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office argues that Snyder’s request “is both untimely and meritless.”

“Now, after the parties agreed to proceed to sentencing on the tax count and have begun their sentencing advocacy before this Court, defendant seeks leave for additional motion practice to challenge his 2019 conviction,” prosecutors said in their Friday filing. “Defendant wants this Court to grant the extraordinary remedy of overturning a jury’s verdict and setting the case for multiple new trials.”

Snyder, prosecutors said in their filing, “failed to raise the issue of misjoinder or severance (of the charges) before trial in 2019.”

Snyder, prosecutors said in their filing, made a “strategic decision” to go to trial on all of the counts rather than arguing at the time for the counts to be separated for trial. “Defendant thus waived any claim to improper joinder by failing to make this argument before trial,” documents state.

Snyder, a Republican, was first elected mayor in 2011 and reelected in 2015, a term cut short by his federal conviction in February 2019.

Snyder received a sentence of 21 months in prison for the bribery and IRS convictions and a year on supervised release from U.S. District Court Judge Matthew F. Kennelly of the Northern District of Illinois.

Snyder successfully argued that the start of his sentence should be postponed until his bid to have the Supreme Court hear his case was complete.

Snyder’s response to the prosecutor’s filing is due by Friday, according to the online court docket. His sentencing on the IRS conviction was scheduled for Jan. 14.

alavalley@chicagotribune.com

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/11/18/prosecutors-james-snyders-request-for-new-trial-untimely-and-without-merit/ 

Por MICHAEL HILL

ALBANY, Nueva York, EE.UU. (AP) — Una jueza desestimó la demanda presentada por la administración Trump contra la ley de Nueva York que impide a los funcionarios de inmigración arrestar a personas en los tribunales estatales, afirmando que el gobierno federal no puede obligar a los estados a cooperar con esas acciones policiales.

La jueza Mae D’Agostino concedió tarde el lunes la moción de Nueva York para desestimar la demanda del gobierno, una de varias acciones legales de la administración republicana contra políticas estatales y locales en el tema migratorio.

La demanda impugnaba una ley estatal de 2020 que prohíbe a los funcionarios federales de inmigración arrestar a personas que entran o salen de los tribunales de Nueva York o que están en el tribunal para procedimientos, a menos que tengan una orden firmada por un juez. La ley, llamada Ley de Protección de Nuestros Tribunales, fue aprobada en respuesta a las acciones policiales en los tribunales durante el primer mandato del presidente Donald Trump. La ley no cubre los tribunales federales de inmigración.

En su demanda, el Departamento de Justicia afirmó que la ley de Nueva York y dos órdenes ejecutivas estatales relacionadas eran inconstitucionales porque obstruían la ejecución de las autoridades federales de inmigración.

Sin embargo, D’Agostino determinó que la decisión de Nueva York de no participar en las acciones migratorias está protegida por la Décima Enmienda, que establece límites a los poderes del gobierno federal.

“Fundamentalmente, Estados Unidos no logra identificar ninguna ley federal que obligue a los funcionarios estatales y locales a asistir o cooperar con los esfuerzos de aplicación de la ley de inmigración federal. Ni podría hacerlo”, escribió la jueza. “No existen tales leyes federales porque la Décima Enmienda prohíbe al Congreso reclutar a funcionarios y recursos estatales y locales para asistir con esquemas regulatorios federales, como la aplicación de la ley de inmigración”.

El Departamento de Justicia por ahora no ha respondido a un correo electrónico solicitando comentarios sobre el fallo, incluyendo si planea apelar.

La fiscal general de Nueva York, Letitia James, una demócrata cuya oficina ofreció los argumentos para desestimar la demanda, declaró que estaba luchando por la “dignidad y los derechos de las comunidades inmigrantes”.

“Todos merecen buscar justicia sin miedo”, indicó James en un comunicado. “Este fallo asegura que todos pueden usar los tribunales estatales de Nueva York sin temor a acciones por parte de las autoridades federales”.

___________________________________

Esta historia fue traducida del inglés por un editor de AP con ayuda de una herramienta de inteligencia artificial generativa.

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/11/18/jueza-desestima-demanda-contra-ley-de-nueva-york-que-prohbe-agentes-migratorios-en-tribunales/ 

Por WILL GRAVES

PITTSBURGH (AP) — El quarterback de Pittsburgh, Aaron Rodgers, podría jugar el domingo a pesar de su fractura en la muñeca izquierda cuando los Steelers visiten Chicago.

El entrenador de los Steelers, Mike Tomlin, afirmó que el equipo evaluará la disponibilidad de Rodgers más adelante en la semana y que la clave para el posible regreso de Rodgers será si puede funcionar de manera segura con una férula que proteja la muñeca.

Mason Rudolph, quien reemplazó de manera competente en la segunda mitad a Rodgers en el triunfo 32-14 sobre Cincinnati el domingo, será titular con Pittsburgh, líder de la AFC Norte (6-4), cuando enfrente a los Bears, líderes de la NFC Norte (7-3), si Rodgers no puede.

Rodgers, de 41 años, es el jugador activo más veterano de la liga y pareció lastimarse la muñeca al ser golpeado después de un lanzamiento a la zona de anotación con los Steelers avanzando al final de la primera mitad.

El cuatro veces MVP se sujetó la muñeca en el grupo tras la jugada, aunque permaneció para hacer un pase más —un pase incompleto a Roman Wilson— antes de que la serie terminara en un gol de campo de Chris Boswell. Rodgers no regresó a la línea de banda durante la segunda mitad, aunque saludó a sus compañeros en el vestuario después de que salieron del campo.

___

Deportes AP: https://apnews.com/hub/deportes

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/11/18/el-quarterback-aaron-rodgers-podra-jugar-con-los-steelers-ante-los-bears-pese-a-su-mueca-rota/ 

The Love Thy Neighbor community Thanksgiving dinner is back, and the nonprofit organizing it is expecting even more people this year.

“We have a good amount of food coming in,” said Perla Sanchez, founder of Chancez. The newly minted nonprofit hosts the dinner with its community partners. “A good amount of businesses are helping. We are incredibly grateful,” she said.

Dinner is being served from 5 to 8 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 26, at La Quebrada Banquets, 50 N. Spring Street, Elgin.

Over the last couple of years, 300 people have come to the dinner, Sanchez said. “We usually try to prepare food for a little more than that. This year, I’m going for double.”

Chancez has gotten enough food for 600 people, Sanchez said. “I know there’s so much need” this year, she said.

“God knows the need. God knows exactly how many people will walk through,” she said. Chancez will have an immense amount of food, enough to feed everyone, she said.

It’s a traditional menu of turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing, and corn from Food for Friends. Sanchez said there was a small selection of Mexican food last year that was popular, so this year, there’ll be more choices.

“We have a ‘taquero’ who’ll have three tacos per person for at least 200 people,” Sanchez said.

And there’s dessert, including Eli’s Cheesecake.

A DJ will be offering entertainment, a photo booth, and fun for everyone, Sanchez said.

“It’s a really beautiful thing to see our community come together,” Sanchez said.

The donations have poured into Chancez even though many businesses are also struggling. She met with one restaurant owner about donating. The woman said it has been a tough year. Sanchez said she understood and told the woman not to worry.

“She cut me off immediately. She said, ‘No, I need to help,’” Sanchez said. “It was just amazing.”

This year, Chancez became incorporated as a 501(c)(3) organization. The designation is helping open a few more doors and encouraging more businesses to donate than before, Sanchez said.

As a nonprofit, Chancez was approved to participate in Toys for Tots. Sanchez said families will be able to sign up for Toys for Tots at the Thanksgiving dinner. A pickup date will be set up in December.

“I’m so excited. I’m a very faithful person. I was like, ‘Okay, Jesus. If you want this to happen, it will happen,” Sanchez said.

Anyone can come in and have dinner for free, Sanchez said.

“I feel like our goal is to create a space where the burdens of life feel a little lighter,” she said. People leave with a full plate and a full heart, Sanchez said. “We can really create these wonderful memories,” she said.

Guests attending the dinner come from different backgrounds, Sanchez said. There are people who are homeless, people who need companionship, and low-income families, she said.

“I think more people are bordering on homelessness” in this environment,” Sanchez said. “It’s really important to help the people in this community now more than ever,” she said.

Sanchez has noticed that the dinner helps provide a way for people to serve and form connections with others.

“The volunteers genuinely want to lift each other up, they want to give love, and they want to serve,” Sanchez said. “We are providing the opportunity for people to serve.”

Sanchez said Chancez has all the food covered, but could use more volunteers.

Anyone interested in volunteering or donating can find information on its GoFundMe page by searching under Chancez NFP.

While Sanchez is busy planning Thanksgiving dinner, she’s also looking ahead to next year. Chancez has been expanding and hosts other events throughout the year.

In January, a dinner is being planned with a company that wants to host an event quarterly, Sanchez said.

Love Thy Neighbor also has a Valentine’s Day dinner for the homeless.

“As soon as the holidays are over, people go back to their lives, and I think it’s definitely important to do this as often as needed,” Sanchez said.

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/11/18/elgin-community-thanksgiving-dinner/ 

Motorists speeding into La Grange Park on LaGrange Road may be in for a rude awakening.

La Grange Park’s Take Five campaign finally paid off when the Illinois Department of Transportation agreed to lower the speed limit from 30 to 25 mph on LaGrange Road, the village’s most heavily traveled roadway.

“I’m just as excited as heck that we got this pushed through,” village President James Discipio said. “It’s a great milestone for La Grange Park.”

Discipio credited village staff with its persistence in getting the change made, saying that village manager Julia Cedillo, assistant village manager Maggie Jarr, police Chief Tim Contois, and fire Chief Dean Maggos all were key to the effort.

“They worked extremely hard to produce information and documents for IDOT,” he said. “They finally looked at it and said yes, this is the right thing to do.”

IDOT owns LaGrange Road, and when the village first approached the state body about trimming the speed limit by 5 mph, the state initially was reluctant.

“Really it was the persistence of everybody to keep at it, even though we were told no a couple of times,” Discipio said. “We went back down because we knew it was the right thing to do. Our residents were fearful of crossing LaGrange Road in our business district there. Our main goal was always safety for our residents and to be consistent with what was already posted in Countryside and La Grange.”

The speed limit on the thoroughfare in La Grange’s downtown area is 20 mph, rising to 25 mph south of the downtown to 47th Street, where it rises to 30 mph heading into La Grange Park. But motorists don’t always adhere to that limit, either.

“Everybody thinks it’s not 30, it’s 39, everybody would speed up,” Discipio said.

He said the road’s curved nature heading into the village also creates “hazards and concerns from our residents.”

Village officials formally requested the speed limit be lowered in July 2024. IDOT approved the change early this month and village workers wasted no time in implementing it by changing the signs Nov. 12.

“I never thought we would get this done because IDOT has been so persistent in not allowing it to happen,” Discipio said. “There’s a lot of ownership in what IDOT does. They’re really possessive of their roads. They want to move traffic, they don’t want to stall traffic. Their objective is to move traffic and keep it flowing.”

He said a change in leadership at IDOT likely helped spur the change after state Transportation Secretary Gia Biagi was appointed to the post by Gov. JB Pritzker in late 2024.

“Gia Biagi really made the difference and said we need to do this,” he said. “It happened and it was persistence — knowing we’re doing the right thing for the safety of our residents.”

Discipio indicated that simply lowering the speed limit on LaGrange Road was not the end of the village’s efforts to increase traffic safety. Those efforts include working to hire two more police officers.

“We’re kind of low right now — we’re two down,” he said. “But we’re going to have to work with the budget and see where it goes. The main thing is that we have enough officers to make sure it’s effective when we reduce the speed limit.”

Hank Beckman is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press. 

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/11/18/lagrange-park-speed-limit-lower/ 

The United States possesses the largest, richest economy in the world, a political system that broadly represents the people based on the rule of law – and a national government that periodically shuts down.

We just completed the latest such ordeal. What gives?

The answer is contemporary, intense partisanship dividing the two parties in Congress. This represents a dramatic change that began in President Jimmy Carter’s administration and reflects a disturbing shift in the way we manage, or mismanage, our government.

In the Senate in September, 60 votes were needed to move essential funding legislation forward, and Republicans have 53 senators, with occasional defections from balanced-budget hawks. The leader of the Senate Democrats, Sen. Charles Schumer of New York, decided to wage a party-line battle over the issue of health-care subsidies,

By contrast, last spring, he quietly aided a Republican spending vote. Ten Senate Democrats led by Schumer joined with Republicans to pass a stopgap budget bill on March 14. They feared delay could bring greater budget cuts.

Before 1980, expiration of appropriations did not disrupt the government. Politicians worked things out.

During the Carter administration, curious Congresswoman Gladys Noon Spellman, D-Maryland, inquired about the 1884 Antideficiency Act, which prohibits spending public funds without congressional authorization.

Comptroller General Elmer Staats, head of Congress’s audit arm, responded with the opinion that Congress did not intend work to cease if appropriations ended. Nonetheless, Attorney General Benjamin Civiletti disagreed. He declared agencies must close when funding ends.

Crises have regularly followed.

There were three shutdowns of the federal government during the administration of Ronald Reagan, and one under George H.W. Bush.

In 1994, Republicans took control of the U.S. House of Representatives after 40 years. Their majority was led by new Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich of Georgia, who dramatically accelerated the trend of shifting that office from a relatively nonpartisan to a highly partisan pulpit.

The federal government was shut down briefly. In the political and public media maneuvering, President Bill Clinton skillfully put the onus squarely on the Gingrich Republicans.

Publicly calm and cool, politically cunning, Clinton moved ahead in the public opinion polls. He was helped by emphasizing fiscal restraint. In the 1996 presidential election, he defeated Republican nominee Sen. Bob Dole of Kansas.

In 2013, Republicans shut down the government for 16 days as part of the effort to derail the Affordable Care Act. Then, as before, Democrats led by President Barack Obama used the Republican effort for partisan political advantage.

The latest shutdown, also hinging mainly on the Affordable Care Act, AKA Obamacare, has been the longest ever, at 43 days. Finally, on Nov. 9, eight Senate Democrats voted with Republicans to begin to end the ordeal.

Schumer himself is under intense, complex political pressure. Along with strong partisan criticism for his own flexibility last spring, he faces a serious threat of a far-left primary challenger to reelection next year.

House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-Louisiana, also deserves credit for maintaining stability last spring, though partisanship is now his watchword.

Democrat Sam Rayburn of Texas remains a remarkably successful House speaker, serving from the 1940s into the 1960s. He led the House in a nonpartisan manner. Rayburn remains the longest-serving speaker, reflecting truly exceptional political skills.

During the same era, fellow Texan Lyndon Johnson, as leader in the Senate and as the president of the United States, demonstrated phenomenal legislative success, regarding health care, civil rights and other matters.

Arthur I. Cyr is the author of “After the Cold War – American Foreign Policy, Europe and Asia” (Palgrave/Macmillan and NYU Press).

Contact him at acyr@carthage.edu

https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/11/18/arthur-i-cyr-government-shutdown/