Midwest
Chicago mayor boots public from rowdy city meeting as residents object to migrant 'invasion'
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson booted members of the public from a city meeting on his proposed 2025 budget on Monday after residents vocally protested against extensive funding for migrants.
While Johnson’s 2025 budget narrowly passed on Monday, it was only after the mayor ordered a temporary recess to allow police to clear residents from the hall to allow council members to vote.
It took six weeks of debate for Johnson to secure the 26 votes necessary to pass the budget plan, with the opposition succeeding in removing a proposed $300 million property tax.
The plan also adopts a $40 million short-term loan that allows the city to delay paying off its debt, a major point of criticism for many of the protesters.
“You caused all this money to go to illegal immigrants,” one resident told Johnson during the public comment period. “Anything that you all pass is not genuine.”
Another resident accused Johnson of failing to “protect the people of Chicago from invasion.”
DOGE HIGHLIGHTS HOW MUCH ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION COSTS US TAXPAYERS
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson is facing heavy public criticism of his budget plan. (Scott Olson/Getty Images)
“He wants to pull a $40 million line of credit and put the city in even more debt,” another resident said. “It’s your fault, because you gave half of the money to illegals.”
STUART VARNEY: THE ‘SANCTUARY MOVEMENT’ IS ON ITS LAST LEGS
Johnson also faced criticism over hiring too many staffers and paying them too much. Chicago reporter William Kelly told Fox News that Johnson has enlisted more than 100 staffers and each of them has a six-figure salary. He also argued many of the positions appear frivolous.
“The vice mayor, a guy named Alderman Burnett, convicted of bank robbery, armed robbery, spent time in jail, he’s getting paid in addition to his aldermanic salary almost half a mil to be ‘vice mayor,’ which essentially has no duties or responsibilities other than waiting to possibly become mayor if something were to happen to Mayor Johnson,” Kelly said.
Chicago residents blasted Mayor Johnson’s proposed budget, which he struggled to pass for weeks. (Fox News)
The frustration around Johnson’s immigration policies has also reached the ears of President-elect Trump’s incoming administration. Tom Homan, Trump’s nominee for border czar in the new administration, sent a warning to Chicago that it will be one of the first to see deportations.
“Chicago is in trouble because your mayor sucks and your governor sucks. And we’re going to start right here in Chicago, Illinois,” Homan said last week.
“Now, if your Chicago mayor doesn’t want to help, he can step aside. But if he impedes us, if he knowingly harbors or conceals an illegal alien, I will prosecute him,” he threatened.
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ROCHESTER, Minn. (FOX 9) – A man from Illinois is facing felony charges after police say he took part in a scheme that convinced a Rochester resident to hand over thousands of dollars in cash and nearly fell for a gold bar handoff.
Rochester phone scam
What we know:
According to a criminal complaint filed in Olmsted County District Court, police say the victim was contacted by phone and told he was under investigation for a crime. The caller convinced him to deliver $30,000 in cash to a man he met in person on June 17, 2026.
The victim was then pressured to arrange a second delivery — this time, 10 one-ounce gold bars — on June 23, 2026. Detectives worked with the victim to set up a controlled delivery using fake gold bars and a GPS tracker.
Charges state that the plan was for the victim to meet whoever arrived to pick up the package, while officers watched nearby. Surveillance officers saw a white SUV with Illinois plates circling the parking lot at 2711 Commerce Drive NW in Rochester.
The complaint states a man, later identified as Kiranbhai Kanubhai Vasava, got out, met the victim, gave the password and took the package. Officers followed the car as it left the scene. Detectives stop suspects and recover cash
Why you should care:
Police stopped the SUV near Eyota and searched it, finding $50,000 in cash, several cell phones, bank checks with Vasava’s name, and packaging materials similar to those used for the fake gold bars. The package with the GPS tracker and fake gold was missing, but officers later found the GPS device torn apart on the side of the highway.
The second man in the car, Hemendrasinh Pravinsinh Dabhi, told police he got a call from India about a package but claimed he knew nothing about it, saying, “he just drives.” Vasava also denied knowing what was happening.
Kiranbhai Vasava linked to Wisconsin case
The backstory:
The complaint states detectives linked Vasava to another similar case in Stevens Point, Wisconsin, where a bank customer was convinced to hand over $50,000 in cash to a driver in a white Honda SUV. Video from that incident showed Vasava receiving the package.
Police say this type of swindle involves convincing victims they are under investigation and must pay money or hand over valuables to clear their name. Detectives say the investigation involved coordination between local police and law enforcement in Wisconsin.
The Source: Criminal charges filed in Olmsted County Court.
KOSCIUSKO COUNTY, Ind. (WSBT) — It’s fair season and a new law uncorks adult beverage sales!
The new Indiana law will go into effect July 1st, making it legal to sell alcohol at county fairs.
The Kosciusko County Fair is set to kick off in just a few weeks and Indiana is officially allowing alcohol to be sold.
The law is bringing back something that’s not necessarily new to this fair.
Here’s what you need to know
The new law will go into effect on July 1st. It officially allows county fairs to apply for fee-free permits to sell alcohol.
Officials with the Kosciusko County Fair say they are participating this year. They are implementing the same guidelines they used when they sold alcohol just at grandstand events.
The difference now is, you can walk around the grounds with your drink. But strict guidelines will be in place for purchasing a drink.
“Actually, we’ve never had any issues. Because we card everybody, so we take that seriously. We also got the ID guides so we can identify the different types of IDs,” said Sheal Dirck, Treasurer of Kosciusko County Fair.
The Kosciusko County Fair already have guidelines in place, so this was an easy transition for the fair.
They will be the only vendors selling alcohol, which will make it easier to control distribution.
The sales will also bring in more revenue.
“Hopefully it allows to keep our ticket prices where they are because right now, insurance, utilities and everything else is going sky high and it’s hard to make ends meet,” said Dirck.
However, some fairs cannot participate because of the July 1st start date, like the Pulaski County Fair, which is going on right now. Pulaski County officials said it is on the agenda for next year. Whereas other fairs are choosing to sit this year out.
“We wanted not spend some time to, to see what that really means for us. It was not a decision we wanted to rush into. But we are happy for the option of it,” said Shelly Steury, GM of Elkhart County 4H Fairgrounds.
Leaders at the St. Joseph County and Elkhart County Fairs said neither of them are selling alcohol.
The Kosciusko County Fair is the only fair that will sell alcohol in our area this year.
IOWA CITY, Iowa (KCRG) -Water and wastewater utility rates in Iowa City will increase starting July 1, following a city council decision on May 19.
The water utility rate will increase by 3%, while the wastewater rate will increase by 5%.
The increases are part of a funding model to help recover the costs of providing water and wastewater services to Iowa City residents.
The new rates will take effect in tandem with Iowa City’s 2027 fiscal year and apply to customers served by the Iowa City Water Division and the Iowa City Wastewater Division.
The city said the rate adjustment supports its continued provision of safe and reliable water service.
To learn more about the city’s utilities, visit their website.
Copyright 2026 KCRG. All rights reserved.
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