Gov. Pat Quinn walked the walk a couple of days ago and encouraged Illinoisans to play the lottery. Quinn purchased a $2 Powerball ticket at a Chicago liquor store in an attempt to emphasize that lottery revenues go to fund education and capital projects such as road work. more ›

A man was killed an an officer was injured when a car rear ended a squad car, the state added an LGBT section to its tourism site, and other news. more ›

College Illinois! is in dire straits. The state's prepaid college tuition program is short roughly $310 million, leaving many wondering where the buck will stop. more ›

Governor Pat Quinn signed a bill into law forming a new commission that is "aimed at researching disparities in the African-American community." more ›

Looking for something voyeuristic to do this holiday season? Why not head down to Springfield and go on a tour of the Illinois Executive Mansion? The Executive Mansion will be open three days a week beginning on Tuesday to display holiday decorations and trees decorated by volunteers and staff from museums and historic state sites. Gov. Pat Quinn will even be on hand to welcome visitors on December 18 from 4 to 6 p.m. (it is his house, after all). more ›

Instead of throwing his hat in the ring to run for mayor--not yet anyway--the self-described "ultra-ultra-ultra conservative" Mike Ditka has decided to endorse an unlikely candidate, Gov. Pat Quinn. An oddly democratic choice coming from a man that once introduced Sarah Palin at a McCain campaign rally, but nevertheless Ditka refers to Quinn as "good people" and offers his support in his taped endorsement video. more ›

Sure, he's got lots to worry about, what with all manner of associates jumping his gubernatorial ship, but Gov. Pat Quinn still managed to set aside some time and resources for all our four-legged friends: just yesterday he signed a new Illinois law mandating all pet stores and animal shelters release extensive breeder and medical information for each pet up for sale or adoption. Amid the scores of adoptable dogs and cats PAWS Chicago spotlighted during a streetside adoption fair in Bucktown, Quinn signed the law not only to protect owners from fraudulent animal breeding and sales, but also to set a special precedent for the humane treatment of specifically bred pets, saying, 'We don't want anybody buying an animal that has been inhumanely treated before its sale, and unfortunately that has existed.' more ›

Gubernatorial candidate Bill Brady called for Illinois Corrections chief Michael Randle’s resignation over the weekend after details were released about the controversial Meritorious Good Time Push program. MGT Push was designed to save tax dollars by early releasing non-violent inmates from prison. It was shut down in December of 2009 when the Governor learned that violent offenders were released on the program as well. The report, issued by former Appellate Court Justice David Erikson blamed an outdated IT infrastructure for the error. The Tribune reports Brady said at a press conference “I believe the highest obligation of any governor is to protect the interests of the public, the public safety. By allowing these releases to occur, Gov. Quinn failed to meet this obligation.” He went on to call MGT Push “one of the greatest lapses in public safety in recent history” and asked how Randle still has a job. Quinn responded by stating that though he recognized Randle made an error in judgment, he was not going to fire him. more ›

Earlier this week, Governor Quinn signed H.B. 4658, the Employee Credit Privacy Act, into law. The bill prevents employers from using a potential employee’s credit history as a factor in determining hiring, firing or compensation. Furthermore, the law forbids employers from obtaining an applicant or employee’s credit report, with a few exceptions such as banks, insurance companies, debt collectors, law enforcement and other state agency’s where use of credit history is required. more ›

How else to explain his claim that he can balance the state's budget within his first year in office by cutting spending by 10 percent? You know, the budget that's currently $13 billion in the red. The Quincy Herald-Whig reported Brady's comments earlier this week: more ›

Paying for school textbooks is already a burden on students, but it’s about to become even heavier this year. The Illinois General Assembly for the fiscal year 2011 eliminated the $40 million in state funding for K-12 textbooks. School districts statewide are now raising their textbook fees leaving students with no other options. Catholic private schools are the hardest hit, the Tribune reports. more ›

During election season, politicians have a habit of toting ethical reforms and dangling yarns of action before voters. Gov. Quinn this week used an amendatory veto on House Bill 5206 to introduce provisions that put government reforms directly into the voters’ hands. The Ethics Initiative allows voters to present legislation related to ethical conduct and campaign finance reform to the General Assembly for a vote. more ›

While Mayor Daley has been on a crusade to bring security and safety to Chicago, Illinois Governor Pat Quinn has been keeping busy by taking a different path: the Governor on Friday finally signed into law a billl which allows adults who were adopted as children to have easier access to their birth certificates. The main aspects of the new law is, as outlined by the Sun-Times: more ›

As we previously reported, embattled Democratic lieutenant governor nominee, Scott Cohen, ran into some trouble (okay, a lot of trouble) earlier this week when it was revealed that he had been arrested in 2005 after his ex-girlfriend--who had been convicted of prostitution--claimed he held a knife to her neck. Now a Cohen campaign source is saying that Cohen is seeking an "honorable way" out after Democrats across the state have urged him to re-think his decision to stay in the race. more ›

"If democracy means anything, it means that the campaign with the most votes win...It wasn't us." With those words, Dan Hynes officially conceded the Democratic Governor's nomination to Gov. Quinn. An emotional Hynes thanked his friends and family and also threw his support behind Gov. Quinn for the general election. Now all eyes turn to the GOP who have yet to hash out the votes to determine their nominee. more ›

The investigation at Burr Oak Cemetery became the focal point in the race for governor on Saturday as Governor Quinn and Comptroller Dan Hynes traded barbs about the scandal. The ABC7 I-Team revealed through memos and emails they obtained that top officials in Comptroller Hynes' office knew in 2003 that there were unearthed human remains at Burr Oak Cemetery. Hynes claims that neither he nor anyone in his office suspected that occupied burial plots were being emptied and reused. more ›

Recently, The Associated Press learned about a secret change in policy by Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn's prison system that has repeat drunk drivers, drug users, and people convicted of battery and weapons violations serving less than three weeks' time behind bars. Records analyzed by the AP show that 850 inmates since September have been released weeks earlier than they ordinarily would be in a new practice called "MGT Push," or "meritorious good time." It turns out the prison system is saving money by ignoring a policy that requires inmates to serve at least 61 days and is instead awarding them discretionary good-conduct credit as soon as they enter prison, which means some prisoners have enough good-conduct days to be released almost immediately. more ›

The last time we checked in with the Gitmo situation almost two weeks ago, the story was drawing attention both nationally and locally. In Illinois, local politicians were arguing back and forth over the possible transfer of Guantanamo Bay detainees to the Thomson Correctional Center in Thompson, Illinois. On Friday, House Republicans decided to make their concerns heard by calling for a bipartisan committee to study the potential sale of the northwest prison. more ›

It seems that the Andy McKenna campaign has riled both the Gov. Quinn campaign as well as the Chicago Tribune after using an alleged quote from a Tribune article that both the Trib and the Quinn says the McKenna folks made up. The ad continues to attempt to tie Quinn to our most recent corrupt ex-gov, Rod Blagojevich. more ›

When asked if he thought Republicans would have a change of heart and support an income tax increase this fall, Gov. Pat Quinn replied, "If some of our Republican friends hit their head in the tub and come to Springfield and say, 'Hey, let's raise the revenue necessary to pay for government,' we'll shake their hands and say, 'Hallelujeh, and let's get going.' I think that that's not a likely scenario." Quinn is pushing for a vote on the tax to take place after February's primary election. Meanwhile, Quinn is off to join the Chicago 2016 delegation in Copenhagen in their final push for the bid. more ›

• Sonia Sotomayer has been confirmed to the Supreme Court.
• Gov. Quinn signed the Texting-While-Driving ban into law today.
• DuPage County State's Attorney Joe Birkett has decided to not run against Lisa Madigan for Attorney General next year.