Illinois Review

Rossi: The Biggest Scandal In U.S. History Is Being Hidden From the People

By Randy Rossi - 

Thanks to Special Council John Durham’s investigation, we now know that Hillary Clinton with the help of the DNC and corrupt FBI leadership committed the worst scandal in U.S. history by slanderously, knowingly, and treasonously creating and supporting the great “Russian Collusion Hoax” with a goal of illegally defeating or kicking out of office President Donald Trump. We now know that Hillary Clinton created this scandal and she and the DNC paid for it. The real tragedy is that this incredible news has been hidden from the American people by the “Fake News”. As of yesterday (5/21), ABC, NBC, CBS, CNN, and MSNBC have not devoted one second to reporting this breakthrough news that has come out of the Sussman trial thanks to Special Counsel Durham. In that trial, multiple witnesses have reported that Hillary and her cohorts knew the “Russian Collusion Hoax” was indeed a hoax, but still presented it to the FBI who then used it and other phony data to illegally obtain FISA warrants to spy on the Trump team.

Did the Disinformation Governance Board originate in a D.C. think tank?

The Department of Homeland Security's new and controversial Disinformation Governance Board may have originated from an under-the-radar think tank report that called on the department to change its focus by prioritizing "nonmilitary threats," such as white supremacism and disinformation.

The report, titled "Future of DHS Project: Key Findings and Recommendations," was published in September 2020 by the Atlantic Council, which is headquartered in Washington, D.C. and committed to a mission of "shaping the global future together."

Thomas Warrick and Caitlin Durkovich, the report's authors, both served in the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) but left their posts during the Trump administration. Durkovich currently serves on the White House National Security Council.

More HERE

Dare We Forget?

By James M. Kushiner -

In his Templeton Address, Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn said, “More than half a century ago, while I was still a child, I recall hearing a number of older people offer the following explanation for the great disasters that had befallen Russia: ‘Men have forgotten God; that’s why all this has happened.’”

How did Solzhenitsyn come to agree? He looked back:

“Since then I have spent well-nigh 50 years working on the history of our Revolution; in the process I have read hundreds of books, collected hundreds of personal testimonies, and have already contributed eight volumes of my own toward the effort of clearing away the rubble left by that upheaval. But if I were asked today to formulate as concisely as possible the main cause of the ruinous Revolution that swallowed up some 60 million of our people, I could not put it more accurately than to repeat: ‘Men have forgotten God; that’s why all this has happened.’”

This amnesia was widespread:

Against American Mobocracy

Abraham Lincoln’s Lyceum Address proves prescient about the dangers of enflaming citizens’ passions for political ends. Josh Hammer writes:

In his 1838 Lyceum Address in Springfield, Illinois, a 28-year-old Abraham Lincoln spoke on “the perpetuation of our political institutions.” The speech was eerily prescient, coming 23 years as it did before then-President Lincoln presided over a nation tragically brought into a grisly Civil War — the ultimate test of that “perpetuation” — by the assault on Fort Sumter.

48% likely US voters would vote GOP if election were held today

Illinois opened the door on election polls Thursday for the June 28th 2022 primary, meaning the election has officially begun. But how are voters leaning? 

The latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone and online survey finds that, if the elections for Congress were held today, 48% of Likely U.S. Voters would vote for the Republican candidate, while 39% would vote for the Democrat. Just four percent (4%) would vote for some other candidate, but another eight percent (8%) are not sure. (To see survey question wording, click here.)

Republicans have added one point to their congressional advantage since April, when they led 47%-39%.

In May 2018, before voters handed Democrats their first House majority in eight years, Democrats held a one-point advantage (43% to 42%) in the generic ballot question. As the November 2018 midterms neared, and the margin was a statistical dead heat – Republicans 46%, Democrats 45% – in the final poll before Democrats won a slim House majority while Republicans gained Senate seats to maintain control of that chamber.

Laying Siege to the Institutions

Why do I say that we need to lay siege to our institutions? Because of what has happened to our institutions since the 1960s.

The 1960s saw the rise of new and radical ideologies in America that now seem commonplace—ideologies based on ideas like identity politics and cultural revolution. There is a direct line between those ideas born in the ’60s and the public policies being adopted today in leftist-run cities like Seattle, San Francisco, and Chicago.

The leftist dream of a working-class rebellion in America fizzled after the ’60s. By the mid-1970s, radical groups like the Black Liberation Army and the Weather Underground had faded from prominence. But the leftist dreamers didn’t give up. Abandoning hope of a Russian-style revolution, they settled on a more sophisticated strategy—waging a revolution not of the proletariat, but of the elites, and specifically of the knowledge elites. It would proceed not by taking over the means of production, but by taking control of education and culture—a strategy that German Marxist Rudi Dutschke, a student activist in the 1960s, called “the long march through the institutions.”

More HERE

Thorner: Will US agree to new, sweeping powers for WHO Director-General?

By Nancy Thorner - 

The current Administration in D.C. is attempting to subvert control of U.S. healthcare to the Director-General of the WHO alone through sweeping new powers and thus drastically compromise our national sovereignty. The current WHO Dir-Genl, Tedros, is a longtime Marxist essentially appointed by the CCP.    

 

The Biden admin proposed secret amendments to the longstanding WHO International Health Regulations of the World Health Assembly (WHA) will be voted on at the WHO May 22-28 meeting. These regulations are a binding instrument of international law and enforceable in all 193 UN member nations via a broad swath of international agencies.

 

Passage of the amendments is a big step to the US voluntarily ceding its sovereignty to the New World Order or Great Reset.

No Mob Rule, No Criminal Domination

Mob rule will lead to tryanny. Newt Gingrich writes:

Two civilization-destroying streams are coming together to form a river of violence and intimidation that can sweep away the Constitution, the rule of law and the most basic elements of our free society.

On the political front, there is a self-righteous fanaticism dominating the quasi-religious ideology of the Left. This fanaticism has convinced many on the Left that the end justifies the means and therefore, they have the right to break the law for political purposes.

Americans Still Rank ‘Climate Change’ Dead Last Among Environmental Concerns, Reports Gallup

Despite billions spent annually on outreach, education, and outright propaganda, a new Gallup poll shows Americans still don’t think climate change is the most significant environmental concern facing the world. In fact, “Global warming or climate change” ranked dead last among seven environmental issues in the new 2022 Gallup Poll.

Those surveyed ranked the drinking water pollution as their top environmental concern. The “pollution of rivers, lakes, and reservoirs,” ranked second among the public’s environmental concerns. Concern over “the loss of tropical rain forests,” “air pollution,” species extinction, ranked third through fifth in order. “Global warming or climate change,” came in dead last as the environmental concern those surveyed “worried [about] a great deal.”

More HERE

Big Tech Censorship: Biden ‘Disinformation’ Board Prompts Lawsuit

The Biden administration’s formation of a “disinformation” board has sparked momentum for two states to sue the U.S. government, alleging pressure and collusion with Big Tech censorship of political content that challenges the government line.

“If we would’ve tried to bring this lawsuit two or three months ago, I think they would’ve laughed us out of court,” Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry told The Daily Signal in a phone interview about the new Disinformation Governance Board inside the Department of Homeland Security.

“People are really starting to raise their eyebrows and it’s mostly because of this disinformation branch,” Landry said. “In other words, the government and Big Tech have become basically brazen in the face of the American people, saying, ‘We are going to give you the information that we deem you need.’”

More HERE

How the ESG Movement is Shooting Itself in the Foot

Reputational risk is the wonderfully vague term that is being used more and more to justify decisions to terminate a business relationship when an objective reason is unavailable. According to an excellent article in the Georgia Law Review, "Regulating Bank Reputation Risk," the concept of reputational risk really took off in the 1990s when federal regulators were looking for a way to incorporate subjective policy and social considerations when examining financial institutions.

The first phase of using reputational risk as a regulatory tool culminated in Operation Choke Point, which was a joint effort of the Treasury Department and the FDIC to target certain undesirable, but legal, businesses. The exposure of Operation Choke Point ended the direct use of reputational risk by regulators to force behaviors at individual banks, but the concept was so powerful it continued to incubate and expand. Today, large banks and big corporations are using the reputational risk tool to drive social-justice policies.

As pointed out in the Georgia Law Review article, the reputational risk tool heavily relies on the concept of stakeholder capitalism. Initially, the stakeholder in question was the regulator itself, but just as the power of reputational risk was becoming evident, so too was the role of stakeholders. The concept of stakeholder capitalism has continued to grow and now is an important element of the environmental, social, and governance (ESG) movement.

More HERE

GOP to Disney: You’ve Lost a Friend in Me

Disney went woke, but conservatives are finally fighting back. Suzanne Bowdey writes:

It’s been an unusually quiet week for corporate America after one of the biggest cultural bombshells of the modern age.

The news that the Supreme Court might be on the verge of overturning Roe v. Wade hasn’t unleashed an army of woke CEOs on the country like most people expected. On the contrary, most of the country’s brands seem surprisingly mum on an abortion issue that would have sent them into the stratosphere as recently as February.

What changed? Experts say one thing: Disney.

South suburban GOPers pick Salvi, Bailey and Pekau in contested races

6th CD GOP candidates Rob Cruz, Niki Conforti, Keith Pekau, Cathy Ryan O'Shea, Scott Kaspar, Gary Grasso rep and IR Editor Fran Eaton (photos by Mark Weyermuller)

TINLEY PARK - Tuesday night, the Bremen Township Republican Organization in south suburban Cook County picked their favorites for the June 28th IL GOP primary. 

After hearing from nearly 20 candidates or their campaign representatives on an array of current issues, the BTRO attendees gave a sampling of how Cook County suburban Republicans are thinking. 

In contested statewide races, BTRO members picked Kathy Salvi for US Senate, Darren Bailey/Stephanie Trussell for Gov/LG, David Shestokas for Attorney General, Dan Brady for Secretary of State.  

The results on the governor's race surprised many attendees, as GOP candidate Richard Irvin has spent millions of dollars on ads in the Chicago area and received zero votes in the BTRO straw poll. The Irvin campaign argues that Bailey cannot win in the suburbs. 

IL GOP lieutenant governor candidates Aaron Del Mar (Gary Rabine) and Stephanie Trussell (Darren Bailey) participated in BTRO forum

In congressional races that include portions of Bremen Township, the poll's winners were Eric Carlson in the 1st CD, Thomas Lynch in the 2nd CD, and Keith Pekau in the 6th CD. 

For Bremen Township Republican Committeeman, Carl Ivan won over Max Solomon. 

Questions were posed to the candidates by Illinois Review editor and co-founder Fran Eaton on topics that are currently being covered by Illinois Review, ranging from inflation, green energy, supply chain, student loan debt, surging crime, immigration, the US Supreme Court and other topics. 

Event was organized by Bremen Township Deputy Committeeman Sand Czyznikiewicz and Audrey Tancos.

More will be coming in the days ahead in Illinois Review on how the candidates responded to those questions. 

Documentary: Choosing Death [The Legacy of Roe]

Even 50 years after Roe v. Wade, few know the truth behind the landmark decision— a decision that has enabled the destruction of over 64 million human lives since 1973.

The Daily Wire is taking a wrecking ball to the four big lies the abortion industry was built upon. Our new original documentary is streaming now and uncovers the inside story of how Roe v. Wade came to pass and why it needs to pass away.

You’ll discover the facts and stories the abortion regime has suppressed for generations, and witness the brutal reality they desperately don’t want you to see. Some of this content is hard to take in, but few subjects— if any— are more important.

Click HERE to uncover the truth. 

Cartoon of the Week

New Poll: 82 Percent of Likely Voters ‘Concerned’ About Rising Gas Prices Under Biden

According to a new poll conducted by Rasmussen Reports on behalf of The Heartland Institute, 82 percent of likely voters say they are either “very” or “somewhat concerned” about rising energy and gas prices under the Biden administration.

Since Joe Biden entered the Oval Office, the cost of energy (especially gasoline and diesel fuel) has absolutely skyrocketed, and this was occurring well before Vladimir Putin arrayed his troops on the Ukrainian border.

More HERE

How Ron DeSantis' Fundraising Compares to Donald Trump

Ron DeSantis' record-breaking fundraising month amid his reelection campaign is putting the Florida Governor on par with Donald Trump in terms of garnering financial support.

DeSantis was able to pull in nearly $10.5 million in donations in April, according to figures shared with Fox News and the Tallahassee Democrat, as the Republican seeks another term in office.

The donations for the record-breaking month included nearly $2.3 million raised by the governor's election campaign team, and $8.2 million from his political committee, Friends of Ron DeSantis.

The total from April means that DeSantis has managed to raise more than $113 million this campaign cycle, dwarfing any other Florida gubernatorial hopeful and approaching the amount that former president Trump is able to raise through his political committees.

More HERE

Pritzker sets new record of over $11M Illinois tax dollars to prevent low-income population growth

CHICAGO - In Illinois "family planning services" are a nicer-sounding term than "abortion clinics" - but whatever one is most comfortable referring to them as, they still perform the same services: finding ways to reject and destroy the next generation of Illinoisans. 

Here's the way Governor Pritzker's office announced Monday that he's giving over $11 Millions of those tax dollars you sent in last month to the State of Illinois to promote "family planning services" in Illinois:

Governor Pritzker Announces Record-Setting $11.2 Million in Funding to Support Family Planning Services Throughout Illinois

$5.4 million HHS grant will expand access to equitable and affordable services

CHICAGO — Governor Pritzker today announced that the State of Illinois has received $5.4 in grant funding from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) that will support and expand access to equitable and affordable family planning services for low-income populations across Illinois. This federal grant, along with $5.8 million in state general revenue funds, means the Illinois Family Planning Program is providing approximately $11.2 million in funding in state Fiscal Year 2023 to 29 delegate agencies that operate 98 family planning clinics throughout the state.

The new HHS grant to the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) will support access to Title X services under the Illinois Family Planning Program that were sharply restricted under the previous federal administration, which imposed a “gag rule” that blocked family planning clinics from referring patients to abortion providers.

“Now that the Biden administration has reversed Trump’s gag rule, I am proud to announce we have rejoined the federal Title X program and we’re putting record funding toward our Illinois Family Planning Program,” said Governor JB Pritzker. “Let this record-breaking investment remind women that the state of Illinois trusts you to make your own choices. To choose what contraceptives are right for you. To choose whether you want to be a parent or not. And we will make sure that—on top of protecting your right to choose—you get the care that you deserve.”

Gas prices reach an all-time high nationwide, even higher in Illinois

For the seventh straight day in a row, gas prices nationwide have reached an all-time high, this time reaching $4.48 per gallon.

And in Illinois, according to AAA, the numbers are even worse with the latest gas tax hike: 

Di Leo: Abortion and the Will of the People

By John F. Di Leo - 

Abortion has been at the forefront of American politics for 50 years, ever since the Supreme Court chose to nationalize the issue in Roe v. Wade, declaring that the federal government, as constructed by the Constitution, did indeed have a role to play in the question. 

The Court, as expressed by Associate Justice Harry Blackmun, determined that state laws against abortion may conflict with an expectant mother’s Constitutional “right to privacy” – a concept not actually found anywhere in the Constitution, but created for Griswold v. Connecticut in 1965. Under Roe v. Wade, the federal government can therefore split a pregnancy into three arbitrary timeframes – trimesters – in each of which, the states have various limited latitude to restrict the procedure. 

In 1992, after twenty years of ridicule, the Court finally admitted to the illogic of the arbitrary trimester distinctions in their decision on Planned Parenthood v. Casey. Here, they largely replaced the trimester concept with the idea that fetal viability should be the key point at which states and the federal government trade primary authority. And now, in 2022, with the leak of Justice Samuel Alito’s 98-page draft opinion on Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, it looks likely that our nation’s abortion laws will be changing again. 

Pritzker signs 125+ Democrat super-majority bills into law

ERepublic image

CHICAGO - Monday, Governor JB Pritzker signed into law 125+ bills. With a super majority rule in both the Illinois House and Illinois Senate, Democrat lawmakers and Illinois' Democrat governor had little with which to disagree:

• Bill Number: HB2991

Description: Requires DVA to contract for a market research analysis of veterans’ field services, subject to appropriations.

Action: Signed

Effective: January 1st, 2023

• Bill Number: HB3124

Description: Requires the City of Chicago to maintain a rotational tow list.

Action: Signed

Effective: January 1st, 2023

• Bill Number: HB3465

Description: Amends the Unified Code of Corrections to provide that each institution or facility of the Department of Corrections shall hire a reentry specialist to assist with the reentry of offenders into the community.

Action: Signed

Effective: January 1, 2023

• Bill Number: HB4089

Description: Requires a school district to provide a plant-based school lunch option to students.

Action: Signed

Effective: August 1, 2023

• Bill Number: HB4284

Description: Applies a tax at the rate of $15 on a transfer of a motor vehicle from trust to a beneficiary that is not a surviving spouse upon the death of the grantor of the trust and the trust becomes irrevocable as is currently done in other transactions.

Action: Signed

Effective: Immediately

1. Bill Number: HB4304

Description: Creates the Foster Care Investigative Reports Commission to investigate all adverse reports, submitted by foster parents to DCFS, concerning the children placed in their care.

Action: Signed

Effective: January 1, 2023

• Bill Number: HB4320

Description: Amends the State Universities Article of the Illinois Pension Code to require an employer to make an additional contribution to the State Universities Retirement System for certain salary increases greater than 6%. Makes other changes.

Action: Signed

Effective: Immediately

Study shows university diversity, equity and inclusion programs ineffective, overstaffed

(The Center Square) – The promotion of diversity, equity, and inclusion, or DEI, on college campuses has become a big focus in academia, but a study says many of the programs are bloated and have a high taxpayer cost.

The Heritage Foundation found that colleges’ vast DEI bureaucracy has little to do with students’ satisfaction with their college.

The study showed the average university has 45.1 people tasked with promoting diversity, equity and inclusion, but some schools have many more.

At the University of Illinois alone, there are 71 DEI personnel, which is four out of every 100 faculty members. At Northwestern University, there are 52 DEI faculty members.

More HERE

Texas Governor Calls for School Choice for Every Child in Lone Star State

The image of Lucy yanking away the football from Charlie Brown has been invoked for years as a metaphor for Texas’ relationship with school choice.

But is the Lone Star State finally about to connect?

Last Monday night, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott called on the Legislature to allow education dollars to follow children to learning options of their parents’ choice, including to private schools.

More HERE

Teachers’ unions scrutinized over Harvard study of COVID-19 learning

Teachers’ unions are under scrutiny in the wake of a Harvard study that shows racial and economic achievement gaps widened during the COVID-19 virtual-learning lockdowns supported by the labor groups.

Harvard University’s report on testing data from 2.1 million students in 10,000 schools found that high-poverty, multicultural public schools spent more weeks in remote instruction during 2020-21 and suffered bigger declines in scores. By contrast, low-poverty districts that remained largely in-person lost relatively little ground.

Thomas Kane, a Harvard economics and education professor who directed the study, said the poor schools that stayed remote for more than half of 2021 lost “about half of a school year’s worth of typical achievement growth.”

More HERE

Thorner: Do they care more about Ukranians than they care about us?

By Nancy Thorner - 

Late on Tuesday, May 10, 2022 the U. S House of Representatives approved a $40 billion aid package for Ukraine.

 

On Wednesday, May 11, 2022, Tucker Carlson presented an excellent commentary about the approval of the U.S. House of Representatives' massive aid package for Ukraine.

 

I transcribed Tucker's entire commentary, believing it well worth the attention of Illinois Review readers.  But the scope and cost of the aid package to Ukraine should be of great concern to all Americans and might even make you angry.

Chicago announces $500k program to include abortions for those out-of-state

(The Center Square) – Chicago city officials announced more taxpayer resources for reproductive health care, including access to abortion for residents of the city and of neighboring states. 

The announced $500,000 from Chicago taxpayers will go to providers and organizations that provide access and resources for abortion care. The city's program will be through the Chicago Department of Public Health, according to the Department's commissioner, Dr. Allison Arwady.

"The Chicago Department of Public Health is proud to be newly investing $500,000 as a part of our maternal and reproductive health portfolio to help support patients who need access to reproductive health care, including abortions," Arwady said.

More HERE

You couldn’t have picked a worse Minister of Truth than Nina Jankowicz

The new czar of disinformation is uniquely ill-suited to be an arbiter of truth--a position that has no place in a free country. Benjamin Weingarten writes:

If you were trying to discredit your own regime, you would be hard-pressed to do better than create a Ministry of Truth, house it within your domestic-security apparatus and appoint a serial spewer of untruth to lead it.

But don’t let the folly of the Biden administration’s Nina Jankowicz-led, Department of Homeland Security-housed Disinformation Governance Board fool you. The DGB is not only a discrediting and delegitimizing project but a dangerous one.

Illegal immigrants getting baby formula while Americans left with empty shelves

(The Center Square) – U.S. Rep. Kat Cammack and other Republican lawmakers are calling on the FDA and the Biden administration to take immediate action to solve a months-long baby formula shortage that's left parents scrambling to find healthy food for their infant children.

Cammack, R-Florida, called on Americans to “demand that the administration take action putting the baby formula back on the shelves for American kids,” prioritizing them over illegal immigrants.

Cammack posted photos of stocked shelves of baby formula at a Customs and Border Protection detention facility in Texas alongside a photo of empty shelves in an American store. Describing them, she said, “The first photo is from this morning at the Ursula Processing Center at the U.S. border. Shelves and pallets packed with baby formula. The second is from a shelf right here at home. Formula is scarce."

More HERE

Thorner: Truth About Student Loan Forgiveness

By Nancy Thorner - 

Rumblings that the Biden administration plans to "forgive" some student-loan debt for potentially millions of upper-class people earning up to $125,000 a year doesn't sit well with many Americans.

 

[..[ "Historically, one powerful check against this wasteful government and educational bloatedness was the fact that - in America - you had to responsibly pay for your own higher education."

 

Now instead of taking away the punch bowl from the rich kids, ole Joe wants to make poor kids pay for the booze. Who will benefit most?

Biden VS. Friedman On Government Spending And Inflation

Who Funds the Campaign to Smear and Pressure Elon Musk?

Elon Musk’s maybe-impending purchase of Twitter is being treated not as a mere business acquisition but as a kind of twilight battle over the fate of the American experiment. Maybe there was a time when hypothetical and probably minor changes to the terms of service of a social networking website could be seen as an eminently survivable event, without any larger implications for long-established rights and customs like free speech. But those days are gone now, as evidenced by yet another high-profile, strong-arm effort by a weirdly open combination of private and public powers acting in unison to taint or scuttle the Twitter sale.

More HERE

No Future For Corporate Simps: How The GOP Can Fight Back

It just seems like he’s fighting on everything every day,” went the frequent Republican lament when President Donald Trump was in office.

And there were indeed fights on everything, every day: In high school and gym locker rooms; in Major League Baseball, the National Football League, and on ESPN; with Wall Street, Silicon Valley, and Hollywood; with CEOs from Mark Cuban to Bob Iger.

But it wasn’t Trump, of course. We’ve all since learned this. Because if it had been, we wouldn’t still be hearing about pundits and satire sites getting kicked off of platforms for calling out a man on a women’s swim team.

If it had just been Trump all along, cities and states wouldn’t still be boycotted by professional sporting events.

If it had been the mean old Donald, we wouldn’t be deluged daily still by woke corporations, tech censorship, and Hollywood meltdowns.

If it had been all about 45, executives across The Walt Disney Company would not still be caught using theme parks to erase gender, using children’s cartoons to push a “not-at-all secret gay agenda,” and promising war with elected representatives who stand in their way.

The truth is the left-wing’s culture war is relentless. And given their near-complete control of the commanding heights, it might seem we’re hopelessly outgunned.

But they do have a weak point: For decades, Americans have generously carved out privileges, incentives, and exceptions for those companies and institutions that we felt served our people’s and our country’s interests. It’s time to stop.

Republican politicians, however, aren’t used to this kind of fighting. They’d rather cite Ronald Reagan as we slip slowly under corporate rule. That won’t do at all.

It’s time to act. It’s time to fix it.

More HERE

States Fight Back Against ESG Report Card

How well your state aligns with the environmental and social justice agenda is a new determining factor for S&P's investment score.

Progressive banks, asset managers, and regulators have successfully imposed the social credit system known as ESG, which stands for environmental, social, and governance, on corporations. In their latest move, ESG will now be applied to states as well.

On March 31, credit rating agency Standard & Poor’s (S&P) published its first ESG “Report Card” for every U.S. state. This has infuriated some state officials, who are demanding that S&P drop this scoring system.

More HERE

The Founders' Constitution and its discontents

The term "constitutional law" is in large part a misnomer. This is rarely discussed within the guild of the legal profession and heretical in the increasingly woke precincts of the legal academy, where the field of "constitutional theory" is a cottage industry. The late Lino Graglia, a law professor at the University of Texas for over 50 years, was fond of pointing out that "constitutional law" has very little to do with the Constitution. Beginning in the 1960s, most consequential Supreme Court decisions parsed a couple of clauses of the 14th Amendment dealing with "due process" and "equal protection," if they cited the text of the Constitution at all.

More HERE

How Many of the World's 8 Billion Will Survive Without Fossil Fuels?

Which is the great threat to civilization, climate change or a world without fossil fuels?

The economic and technological advances over the last 200 years have transformed how we produce and consume energy. From the 1800’s, the fossil fuels of coal, oil, and natural gas now support more than 80 percent of the world’s energy supply to meet the world’s population demands for more than 6,000 products in our daily lives, made from the oil derivatives manufactured out of crude oil, that did not exist before the 1900’s, and the fuels to move the heavy-weight and long-range needs of more than 50,000 jets and more than 50,000 merchant ships, and the military and space programs. Below is a pictorial history of these energy transitions over the years.

More HERE

Biden's disinformation board is authoritarian and reminds me of my life in China

There is a parallel between Biden's plan and China's Central Propaganda Department. Helen Raleigh writes:

The Biden administration announced the establishment of the Disinformation Governance Board (DGB) last week to be created within the Homeland Security Department (DHS), aiming to counter "misinformation related to homeland security."

There are many unknowns about DGB. For example, we don’t know how the members of DGB will be selected, what kind of power it will have, and how it defines misinformation. But the early signs are not promising. The vaguely defined roles and authorities of DGB have alarmed Americans, and many see the agency as the "Ministry of Truth" that George Orwell warned us about in his dystopian novel "1984."

Here Are The Democrats Using The Leaked Dobbs Opinion As An Excuse To Demand Court-Packing

Democrats will do everything in their power, including destroying the American judicial system, to get their way. Jordan Boyd writes:

Democrats have long threatened to pack the Supreme Court with additional activist judges that would do the left’s bidding without hesitation. Now that the court appears poised to overturn Roe v. Wade, Democrats are ignoring Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s belief that nine is “a good number,” and calling for adding extra justices.

On the campaign trail, Biden repeatedly refused to state his beliefs about court-packing. While he once called the unprecedented practice a “bonehead idea,” he did create a court-packing commission to evaluate just how useful it would be to his administration to add justices.

Pritzker celebrates Planned Parenthood drawing 75% of abortion clients from out-of-state

FAIRVIEW HEIGHTS - In a speech delivered by Governor JB Pritzker Wednesday, he congratulated Planned Parenthood in Fairview Heights, IL for drawing in 75% of their abortion clients from surrounding states. His speech as distributed by the Pritzker office:

Thank you, and good morning. With the Supreme Court’s anti-choice majority poised to further restrict reproductive rights and overturn Roe v. Wade, the nation is on the precipice of eliminating a federal right that has been the law of the land for 50 years. It’s shameful and wrong.

Lt. Governor Stratton, our partners in the statehouse, and I want to thank Planned Parenthood for hosting us this morning, but more importantly for the truly lifesaving and life-changing work for patients here in Illinois and throughout the United States. 

We joined together to mark the regional logistics center’s opening in January, on the 49th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, knowing that Roe’s guarantee of a woman’s right to choose might not make it to its 50th.

(Posted by Governor Pritzker last week)

Myers: New Trier GOP's endorsement sessions can be much better

By New Trier GOP member Irwin Myers - 

On Saturday, 5/7, I attended the New Trier GOP candidate endorsement session. I was excited to participate in my first endorsement session for reasons – getting to meet and hear different candidates in person, getting involved with a Republican organization right in my hometown, but more than anything else, I was looking forward to meeting other Republicans in New Trier who want to stop the madness of the ‘woke’ agenda in Illinois.

However, I feel that some things could have been handled better to achieve these goals. Below are some suggestions for a more successful event in the future.

First, out of thousands of Republican voters in New Trier, only about twenty people were present. An endorsement by so few people cannot be a true representation of the township GOP. In this political climate, the New Trier GOP should have had a packed room. I know there is a website I could have visited to learn about this meeting, but they could have sent an email to everyone who registered as a Republican, inviting them to attend this important session.

New Trier GOP endorses Salvi, Rabine and DeVore

NEW TRIER - The New Trier GOP held its endorsement session Saturday. To be endorsed, candidates had to receive 60% of the total votes cast at the session - either on the first ballot or the sole runoff ballot.

The group's endorsement finals were sent out by Kathy Myalis, New Trier GOP Chairman as follows:

US Senate: Kathy Salvi

Governor: Gary Rabine and Aaron Del Mar
Attorney General: Thomas DeVore
Secretary of State: Dan Brady
Comptroller: Shannon Teresi
Treasurer: Tom Demmer

 

Thorner: Illinois' chance for GOP majority on IL Supreme Court depends on District 2

Judge Daniel Shanes

(Editor's note: Illinois Review is not endorsing in this IL GOP primary race) 

By Nancy Thorner - 

This is a tumultuous year in Illinois for Republican politics with billionaire Ken Griffin pouring tens of millions of dollars into supporting IL GOP gubernatorial primary candidate Richard Irvin. 

While most eyes have been focused on the gubernatorial primary, the real opportunity for Republicans to finally break from the present one-party dictatorship in Illinois is not through the governorship. Even a near-miraculous defeat of billionaire Pritzker is not going to lead to Republican control of the legislature given the latest Democrat gerrymander, particularly in the Illinois Senate where the Democrats now have a 41 to 18 super-majority. 

Illinois Supreme Court vacancies

Two seats on the seven-member Illinois Supreme Court will be filled by voters in the 2022 elections. In addition, Justice Rita Garman, who holds the seat for the 4th District, announced today that she will retire effective July 1, 2022. 

In Illinois, justices and judges and Illinois courts are chosen in partisan elections.  Illinois is one of eight States that chooses judges in this way.

Judge Noverini

IL Supreme Court District #3

The surest way to check the Democrats' political control in Illinois is for Republicans to win the two open Illinois Supreme Court districts this fall.  The third district used to be represented by Chief Justice Thomas Kilbride, but he failed to reach the 60% mark needed to be retained in office in 2020. 

While it is unlikely any Republican elected from Southern Illinois (3rd Supreme Court district) would be liberal on such issues as abortion, gun control and redistricting, it’s quite possible that type of Republican could be elected from the 2nd Supreme Court district. 

As for downstate Illinois, it is trending more and more Republican. For example, Congressman Mike Bost received 60.4% of the vote, Congressman Darin LaHood 70%, while newcomer Congresswoman Mary Miller received an astonishing 73.4% two years ago.

Given the terrible trio of Biden, Pritzker and Lightfoot, plus the usual off-year election sag of a party with an unpopular President, the Supreme Court District 3 open seat is definitely winnable for Republicans.

IL Supreme Court District #2

As it now stands, the 2nd District primary race could be between a conservative outsider and a more establishment type. In short, the 2nd District primary could even determine the direction of a nominally Republican Illinois Supreme Court, especially with the unexpected, sudden retirement of Republican Justice Rita Garman.

Irvin & Bailey fighting for 1st and 2nd, Cor Strategies poll shows

(The Center Square) – Three of the six candidates running in the June 28 primary for Illinois governor – those with the most campaign contributions – are sparring in the media as a recent poll indicates it's really a two-way race.

Incumbent Democratic Gov. J.B. Pritzker has $87 million in political funds, according to campaign finance data compiled by IllinoisSunshine.org. Democratic challenger Beverly Miles has $260.

For the Republicans, Aurora Mayor Richard Irvin has the most money of all six GOP candidates, with $36 million. He was called out last week by the third place money holder, state Sen. Darren Bailey, R-Xenia, who has $3.4 million.

The rest of the story HERE.

23 yr old Chicagoan ordered 15 months in prison for Summer 2020 rioting

From the FBI - 

CHICAGO — A man was sentenced today to more than a year in federal prison for inciting rioting involving multiple incidents of property damage and looting in Chicago in the summer of 2020.

JAMES MASSEY, 23, of Chicago, pleaded guilty earlier this year to a federal charge of inciting and participating in a riot.  U.S. District Judge Matthew F. Kennelly imposed the 15-month prison sentence and ordered Massey to pay $185,148 in restitution.

The sentence was announced by John R. Lausch, Jr., United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois; Emmerson Buie, Jr., Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Field Office of the FBI; and David Brown, Superintendent of the Chicago Police Department.  The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Aaron R. Bond.

“Anyone involved in destructive behavior in Chicago – such as rioting – should expect to be held accountable,” said U.S. Attorney Lausch.  “Our office will continue to work with the FBI, CPD, and our other law enforcement partners to prosecute rioters and others engaged in violent crime.”

“Inciting riots and other unlawful activity are both irresponsible and reckless, and the FBI will continue to work tirelessly with police and prosecutorial partners to ensure public safety is not compromised,” said FBI SAC Buie.

The Mental, Emotional And Financial Benefits Of Going To Church

Weekly churchgoers are happier, have better relationships and make more money.

By Ben Johnson, Daily Wire - 

The legacy media never seem more enthusiastic than when they are reporting about the decline of church membership. Only 36% of Americans say they attend religious services at least weekly, while 30% say they attend “seldom/never” — and both trends are moving in the wrong direction. In 2020, the number of Americans who consider themselves members of a church or other religion fell below a majority (47%) for the first time. And the younger the respondent, the less likely they are to attend church or to believe in God at all. 

That’s lamentable for numerous reasons. For believers, the biggest issue comes in their alienation from God and the atrophying of their soul’s higher functions. But a series of studies prove that those who do not attend church, or do not attend regularly, miss out on a host of secular benefits, as well. Those benefits include:

More HERE

Rossi: The Tragedy of Abortion and Its Massive Negative Impact On American Values

By Randy Rossi - 

It is absolutely tragic to watch the current uncivilized and uninformed debate about abortion which has caused the deaths of over 62 million American babies since Roe v. Wade was made the law of the land. The real tragedy is that most Americans don’t know the truth about this debate.

First and foremost, how can any civilized human being celebrate the death of 62 million human babies? Roe v. Wade was started when Norma McCorvey wanted an abortion which was illegal and her case became Roe v. Wade when she brought it to court under the name of “Jane Roe” to protect her privacy. Years after Roe v. Wade was decided making abortion a legal right, Norma McCorvey became a strong anti-abortion activist because she realized that abortion was the murder of a human infant.

How many people know that Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg who was pro-abortion said that Roe v. Wade was an unconstitutional ruling that went too far? Almost exactly what Justice Samuel Alito said in his opinion piece on Roe v. Wade that was illegally leaked to the public before the final Supreme Court ruling was made on Roe v. Wade which is causing a new brutal “civil war” about abortion.

Sadly in 10 US states, abortion can be done right up to the moment of birth. In contrast, much of Europe has made abortion illegal after 12-15 weeks except to save the life of the mother. America has some of the most barbaric abortion laws in the world!

FGA sues over White House plan directing federal agencies to engage in voting activities

(The Center Square) – The Foundation for Government Accountability sued the U.S. Department of Justice after the department ignored its Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests about an executive order directing federal agencies to promote “access to voting.”

The Florida-based nonprofit sued in U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida, Fort Myers Division.

President Joe Biden issued an executive order last year directing the heads of all federal executive agencies to submit a strategic plan to his Domestic Policy Advisor Susan Rice within 200 days of issuing the order. The plan would detail their efforts to increase voter registration and voting even though their agencies have no statutory authority to have anything to do with voting.

More HERE

The Left vs. the Supreme Court of the United States

By Chris Talgo - 

If history has taught us anything, it is that waging war on the Supreme Court is absolutely part of the radical left's long-term strategy in erecting a highly centralized, all-powerful federal government that is accountable to nothing, not even the Supreme Court.

More HERE

Jobs Report Is Good; Fed Not So Good on Inflation

Jobs report shows employment growth remains strong, but economic fundamentals are weakening and the Fed showed it doesn’t know it is the cause of inflation.

Business surveys for April show a slight slowdown in activity with both manufacturing and service companies reporting numbers in the mid-50s (50 represents break-even or no increase in activity). New orders continue to increase, albeit with readings in the low to mid-50s.

U.S. productivity data show a sharp decline in the first quarter. Moves away from classical economic principles reduce productivity and living standards. The productivity decline of 0.6% over the past year is typical of what happens when economic policies move away from sound economic principles.

More HERE

Eaton: Is Irvin the only one that can beat Pritzker in the General?

Governor JB Pritzker (center) with Aurora Mayor Richard Irvin (3rd from left)

In only ten days, early voting will begin in the IL GOP 2022 primary. 

Illinois Family Action has invited Illinois Review editor Fran Eaton to write about the upcoming IL GOP primary gubernatorial race. 

You may want to take a few minutes to review the questions being asked by Illinois conservatives of the candidate IL GOP officials are pushing onto the conservative base - just like they did in 2014 and 2018 with former Governor Bruce Rauner.

Aurora Mayor Richard Irvin’s campaign backers’ mantra is “Irvin’s the only one that can beat Pritzker in the General.”

But is Richard Irvin really the only Illinois Republican candidate that can beat the current governor in the upcoming 2022 General Election? And who is this Richard Irvin? Let’s take a closer look.

Interesting Facts About the REAL Richard Irvin

• Irvin publicly applauded Gov. JB Pritzker for his tyrannical COVID-19 policies

• Irvin has consistently supported Leftist activist groups such as Planned Parenthood, Gay Pride Parades, and Black Lives Matter – which works hand in hand with radical anarchists such as Antifa

• Irvin has questionable financial dealings as Aurora mayor with Ken Griffin projects

• Irvin has made vicious and untruthful campaign attacks on fellow Republicans

• Irvin has very confusing family values

The Democratic Governors’ Association’s ads are already attacking Irvin’s criminal defense law practice by pointing to sleazy criminals they claim Irvin helped to escape stronger punishment — launching the effort to undermine Irvin’s claims he will fight crime and defend law enforcement.

Here's the rest of the piece ... And thanks to Illinois Family Action for the opportunity to share!  

Di Leo: Solar Power, Subsidies and the Real World

By John F. Di Leo - 

While budgets should have been getting tighter for years now, some states, at least, are finally awakening to the need to watch their spending.  Well, better late than never, right?

One example of this newfound awareness is the effort of some to reconsider our generous subsidies for solar panels, particularly the rooftop panels that one sees high atop single family homes across otherwise reasonable suburbs. Mississippi, Florida, and other states are in the news right now as they debate the question of rethinking the levels at which the taxpayer ought to subsidize the homeowner for this choice of dubious economic value.

It costs between $15,000 and $70,000 to install solar panels atop the roof of a normal single family home. Why the broad range?  The pitch of the roof, the brand of the panels, the total square footage, and so forth.  The prevailing wage of such installers varies widely across the country... and the relative value of the installation varies from side to side of the same street.