By Rich Miller Ogden and Fry conducted a poll in the days leading up to former President Donald Trump’s visit to the Quincy area for a U.S. Rep. Mary Miller endorsement in late June. The poll of Republicans in the Downstate 15th Congressional District taken June 22-24 (Trump’s visit was the 25th) found Miller leading…

By Rich Miller The four Illinois legislative leaders did not have a spectacular primary day last week. House Speaker Chris Welch lost three incumbents to primary challengers. Senate President Don Harmon lost an appointed incumbent and an open seat race. House Republican Leader Jim Durkin lost two incumbents and came up short in some other…

By Richard Guebert Jr. The heat and humidity may be cranked up during the summer, but Illinois farmers are still hard at work making management decisions on their farms. With corn and soybeans planted across the state each spring, many farmers take time in the hotter months of the year to learn about new, innovative…

By Ray Hanania I have covered elections long enough to know that anything is possible, including seeing the bad guys defeat the good guys. The toughest challenge is getting voters to vote. Turnout is always low. For those voters who do vote, it still all comes down to one principle: you can’t force voters to…

By Ray Hanania Governor JB Pritzker is planning to run for president in 2024. Actually, the proper way to report that is to say Pritzker is planning to “buy” the Democratic nomination for president in 2024, the same way he bought the Democratic nomination for Illinois governor in 2018. Pritzker has been spinning negatives into…

By Wayne Winegarden We’re all looking for relief from record high gas prices these days. Gas prices are the highest in United States history at a nationwide average of $4.59 as of May 19, according to AAA. Many states surpass this average with California at $6.050, Nevada at $5.224, Washington at $5.148, and New York…

By Rich Miller As I’ve been telling my newsletter subscribers for several weeks now, talks began in mid-May about a possible special state legislative session to address the abortion issue. Gov. JB Pritzker, Senate President Don Harmon and House Speaker Chris Welch had some brief chats about bringing legislators back to town back then. Illinois…

By Christine McDonald There is a sexual assault taking place right now. Every 68 seconds, someone in America is sexually assaulted. More than 97% of perpetrators walk away free. A major reason is mismanagement of physical evidence. It’s time for police work to enter the modern era and employ the latest technology for collecting and processing…

By Ray Hanania Cook County Commissioner Sean Morrison has tried to define himself as an outspoken critic of government officials who exploit police resources for their personal security. But recent reports by WBEZ radio and Chicago Sun-Times expose his hypocrisy. Morrison received an inordinate amount of formal police security checks of his home in the…

By Rich Miller “We’re not the party of Trump,” Senate Republican Leader Dan McConchie told an interviewer a couple of months ago. “I’m in the Republican Party and the party of Lincoln. And at the end of the day, the important thing is that we’re standing up for ideas and ideals and not a personality.…