A bill closely resembling Arizona’s controversial immigration law (SB1070), which requires law enforcement to detain or question anyone suspected of being undocumented, made its way into the Illinois General Assembly last week. Rep. Randy Ramey, Jr., a Republican representing the 55th district, introduced the Taxpayers Protection Act, which would require Illinois law enforcement to make a “reasonable attempt” to determine the immigration status of any person stopped, detained, or arrested before they are released. The bill would also impose penalties on immigrants not carrying residence permits at all times and provides for sanctions against employers that “knowingly or intentionally employ an unauthorized alien.” more ›

We're keeping tabs on reports from Arizona of a shooting in Tucson, AZ today. Among those shot was Arizona Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords. Giffords was meeting with constituents when a gunman approached and opened fire, hitting Giffords in the head along with several others. more ›

Mesa, AZ voters yesterday voted to fund construction of a new spring training facility for the Cubs. more ›

According to a report from Fox 32 WFLD, Illinois is home to nearly half a million undocumented immigrants (432,000), almost twice the number believed to be living in Arizona (283,000). But unlike the Copper State, where Mexicans make up 90 percent of those immigrants, only 40 percent of Illinois's undocumented immigrant population are native Mexican. More illegal immigrants in Illinois are from either Europe (24 percent) or Asia (also 24 percent), with 11 percent coming from that most ubiquitous of locations, "other." more ›

• The Arizona boycott is now apparently making its way around City Hall.
• In the wake of this weekend's violence, 130 additional police officers will soon be on the streets of Chicago.
• Rod and Patti Blagojevich will take the stand in their own defense.

Cook County commissioners passed a resolution this week boycotting Arizona businesses in response to the state's punitive law requiring immigrants to carry their alien registration papers, and requiring police to question people they suspect of being in the United States illegally. The county then voted to award one of two contracts for red light ticketing cameras to American Traffic Solutions, based in Scottsdale, Arizona. The other contract went to Redspeed Illinois, based in Lombard, Illinois. (That's DuPage County, in case you were wondering.) The red light cameras will be posted at some 30 intersections around Cook County. One town targeted seems to be Schaumburg where another fight over the cameras could be brewing. The Expired Meter has more on that as well as a list of the proposed intersections. more ›

The national fervor surrounding Arizona’s controversial immigration legislation shows no signs of tapering off. While Sarah Palin is urging states to follow Arizona down the road to a “papers, please” society, even some officials who have closer ties to the issue question the state’s recent immigration law. The Tribune reports in a visit to Chicago yesterday, John Morton, head of Immigration and Customs Enforcement said Arizona’s new law is not “good government.” In a meeting with the Trib’s editorial board, Morton also said that his agency may not process illegal immigrants arrested in Arizona under the new law. While he did say that his agency would step up enforcement of immigration laws, he said “the best way to reduce illegal immigration is through a comprehensive federal approach, not a patchwork of state laws.” more ›

The Highland Park High girls varsity basketball team won't be making their way to Arizona for a tournament as originally planned in a move that's thrust the school into the middle of the debate over that state's new controversial immigration law. While school officials are citing safety concerns as one reason to cancel the trip, team members and their parents say that it's a political play, one that has no place in high school athletics. The team is coming off a championship season and had been raising funds for the trip. But District 113 Assistant Superintendent Suzan Hebson gave the Tribune some fishy statements. more ›

White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen has never been one to hold back his opinion. And now he's speaking out over Arizona's new controversial immigration law. Saying he was "disappointed" by its passage but understood what brought it about, Guillen was worried it could lead to similar laws in other states: "Once they have this in one state, every state will come out with the same stuff and that's going to be hard." Guillen hopes some sort of reform would come about soon - "Help them get a visa or try to do something different to keep those guys here." - while also expressing confidence the new law won't keep others from coming to America. more ›

We told you earlier today about the planned protest at Wrigley Field before the Cubs-Diamondbacks game, aimed at the state of Arizona over its new controversial immigration law. Friend of Chicagoist Jason Muelver swung by and snapped some photos of the protest for us. Jason guessed the group of protesters to be around 50 people holding signs but that some passers-by, such as Paul D'Amato (photo 5) joined in. more ›

Arizona's controversial immigration law (SB 1070) has angered many around the nation in recent days, with everyone from Canadian dream-pop outfit Stars to San Francisco and Los Angeles city employees mulling boycotts of the state. Here in Chicago, activists, who demonstrated this week in Broadview, are preparing to rally against the law as part of the annual May Day event. The rally, set for Saturday at 1 p.m., will begin from Union Park, followed by a march downtown. more ›

Arrests at an immigration reform protest in Broadview this morning highlight a busy week of stories across the nation surrounding the issue. more ›

Yesterday's primaries in Ohio, Texas, Vermont and Rhode Island saw John McCain assume the mantle of the Republican presidential nominee, with commanding victories in all but Texas, and Mike Huckabee's announcement that he's withdrawing from the race. "It's now important that we turn our attention not to what could have been or what we wanted to have been, but now what must be -- and that is a united party," Huckabee told told supporters in Dallas. After it became clear that McCain would sweep all four races, Barack Obama called McCain to congratulate him on winning the nomination, adding that he was looking forward to facing the Arizona senator in the general election. more ›

In a race that may be a precursor to the Ohio and Texas Democratic primaries in March, Barack Obama won a decisive victory in Wisconsin last night, leading Hillary Clinton by nearly 20 points. He also won Hawaii, taking over 75 percent of the vote in a state where he had campaigned as a "native son." His victories last night mark his ninth and tenth consecutive primary or caucus wins and put his pledged delegate count at 1,140. Clinton has 1,005 pledged delegates. When you add in committed superdelegates, Obama leads Clinton 1,301 to 1,239, with John Edwards's 26 delegates still in play. Chris Bowers at OpenLeft points out that Clinton has now surpassed Jessee Jackson's 1988 total of 1218 delegates. 1988 saw the highest number of delegates ever won by a Democrat who did not win the nomination. more ›

Today's the big day. Along with 24 other states, we're voting in Super Duper Tuesday. Up for grabs are 1688 pledged Democratic delegates, and 900 Republican delegates. Delegate-heavy states such as California, New Jersey, New York, Illinois and Georgia could play a deciding role in the outcome of both races. But with polling showing a tight Democratic race, and Obama working overtime to split votes in odd-numbered districts, tonight's results won't produce a nominee for the Democrats. more ›

With the race for the Democratic nomination showdown just days away, and polls showing Obama closing in on Clinton in key Super Duper Tuesday states, the Obama campaign made a huge ad buy during the Super Bowl in the Super Tuesday states, including Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Georgia, Kansas, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Utah, Virginia and Washington, (but, alas, not Illinois) more ›

Anyone walking out an about today surely came across the fans of the USC Trojans. The Trojans play Notre Dame today in South Bend, and it seems like many of their fans decided to make a three-day weekend and fit in some shopping in Chicago. While walking down Michigan Avenue, Chicagoist could barely keep count the number of people sporting crimson and gold. The two teams will meet for the 79th time today with Notre... more ›

Well, that didn't take long, did it? The Arizona Diamondbacks finished off the Cubs 5-1 on Saturday, sweeping the NLDS ... and delaying a Cubs World Series at least another year. Those of us familiar with the Cubs knew what to expect from Game Three as a soon as Rich Hill's very first pitch to Chris Young ended up in the left-field bleachers. Hill was lucky to escape the inning down only 2-0, and he... more ›

Does Starbucks have anything larger than a venti? We're sure that many across Chicago are wondering the same thing if they stayed up to watch the entire Cubs-Diamondbacks game last night. Between the 9:07 p.m. first pitch and a 3-hour, 44-minute game, one was hard pressed to brush their teeth and make it to bed before 1:00 a.m. — enough time for a few hours of shuteye before getting up to trudge into the office. more ›

In Game One of the NLDS, the Arizona Diamondbacks beat the Cubs 3-1, taking a 1-0 lead in the best-of-five series. The big question is whether Cubs skipper Lou Piniella pulled Carlos Zambrano too soon. The Cubs ace was dealing, allowing just one run on four hits while striking out eight. The Diamondbacks' Brandon Webb matched Zambrano pitch for pitch, resulting in a 1-1 tie after the sixth. Yet Piniella pulled Z after six innings... more ›

Chicago won't be waiting until the Cubs win the World Series to celebrate. Given the Cubs' postseason track record over the past 99 seasons, that's probably a smart idea. A rally to celebrate the Cubs making the playoffs will be held at noon on Monday in Daley Plaza. While Cubs fans celebrate downtown, the Cubs themselves will head to Arizona. While baseball's regular season concluded on Sunday, the wild card won't be determined until a... more ›

The Cubs have clinched the NL Central crown -- and with two games to spare! Following a three game sweep at the hands of the Florida Marlins, things were looking sketchy, but the Brewers kept on losing, too. When the Cubs returned to the win column in Cincinnati on Friday night, and Milwaukee lost yet again, the final two games were subtracted from the magic number and the Cubs earned a berth in the postseason... more ›

- "Fast Eddie's Last Race:" Vrdolyak pleads not guilty to bribery charges. - More goodness from Tony Rezko. - Rudy Giuliani's teenage daughter is an Obama girl. - The art of the deal: Mayor Daley reaches labor peace, brokering a 10-year deal with city trade unions that may help attract the 2016 Summer Olympics. - Don't get used to it: Steve Stone fills in for Darrin Jackson (who's in Arizona waiting for his wife... more ›

The Hideout plays host tonight to two of Chicago’s brightest independent collectives, Skybox and Plane. The latter have been on the Chicago and national radar since their 2004 album Shake My Ground debuted at #42 on the CMJ charts, but the going wasn't as smooth after that. Fans and critics alike were puzzled by the alternatingly hooky pop and quizzical experimentation on 2005’s follow up EP, Hello More. Never fear, however – Plane has clearly... more ›

A speeding ticket. That's what ended Tank Johnson's career with the Chicago Bears. On Thursday, Gilbert, Arizona authorities notified Johnson that they declined to press any charges against him following his arrest last month for suspicion of DUI. Just days after the event, the Bears cut Tank. That move began to look a little premature as authorities revealed earlier this week that Tank's BAC was .072 -- under the .08 limit for DUI. They could... more ›

See, they should have waited! The Bears cut defensive tackle Tank Johnson last week following his arrest in Arizona on suspicion of DUI, before even getting all of the facts in the case. At the time, we suggested that maybe they should have waited until the blood alcohol content results came back rather than making such a hasty decision. On Monday, the results came back and showed that Tank's BAC was .072 — below the... more ›

Following his arrest early Friday morning on suspicion of DUI, the Bears waived Tank Johnson on Monday. In the team's release to the media, GM Jerry Angelo said, "We are upset and embarrassed by Tank's actions last week. He compromised the credibility of our organization." So what great crime ultimately lead to Tank's dismissal from the Bears? He was stopped for driving 40 mph in a 25mph zone at 3:30am in Gilbert, Arizona and cited... more ›

It really is tempting to succumb to the illusion of control when it comes to crime in this country. Those of us outside of the millions upon millions of square footage devoted to prisons can debate about the death penalty, or watch a movie or TV show about rehabilitation without ever having to face the prison industrial complex that has quietly grown out of control, and has never evolved to suit the needs of the people it supposedly exists for to help, or change. more ›

With all that went down this week, we thought we thought we'd cheer everyone up by giving everyone a double dose of dogs. It was a rollercoaster ride of emotions this week at DCist. Like the rest of country, we were floored by the news of so many dead coming out of Virginia Tech, and with so many of the victims and their relatives from the D.C. area, we felt it important to pay... more ›

Chicagoist wants to know where exactly the White Sox offense has been. Did they leave it down in Arizona? Because for a team to hold an opponent to one hit yet lose the game is quite an impressive feat! In fact, only 10 times in the past 15 seasons have teams with fewer than two hits won a game. more ›