Illinois
DNC in Chicago: Tim Walz’ wife makes surprise address to Illinois Democrats
Tim Walzs wife makes surprise appearance at DNC breakfast
Illinois leaders gathered at the Loop’s Royal Sonesta for the first DNC breakfast. Minnesota Gov. Tim Walzs wife, Gwen, made a suprise apperance and introduced herself to the Illinois Presidential Delegation.
CHICAGO – A surprise guest visited Illinois Democrats as they gathered for their first delegation breakfast of Chicago’s Democratic National Convention.
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz’ wife Gwen Walz received a standing ovation when she was introduced as a speaker, during a high-energy program that featured addresses from Gov. J.B. Pritzker, Illinois Sen. Tammy Duckworth, and New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker.
“I can’t think of a better team than Kamala and team,” Walz told the crowd. “They’ve been spending their entire career fighting for the middle class.”
Walz thanked Pritzker and Illinois for hosting the convention and mentioned that she and her family traditionally spend New Year’s Eve in the city. She asked the delegates in the room to canvas, make calls and work to elect the Harris Walz ticket in November.
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“We have 78 short days to make history. 78 days to do the work together,” Walz said.
Duckworth took the podium soon after and recounted how she convinced democratic leaders to bring the convention to a city in a non-swing state.
“We’re more than just the heartland, we are the heart of our nation,” Duckworth said.
Duckworth praised the leadership of Pritzker and says party leaders were sold on Chicago as a host because of policies pursued by democrats in the state.
“Where else are you gonna go where you see a state that’s rebuilt its economy by a democratic governor after a republican tried to drive it into the ground?” Duckworth said.
One high profile public official – Mayor Brandon Johnson – was absent for today’s breakfast. Instead, he spoke at the Hilton before Michigan’s democratic delegation.
Duckworth, Pritzker, and Walz will have prominent speaking slots at the United Center during official Democratic National Convention programming.
CENTRALIA, Ill. – An investigation is underway after multiple people were shot Sunday in Centralia, Illinois, according to a report from WFCN News in southern Illinois.
FOX 2 has confirmed the Illinois State Police is investigating a shooting and taking over the investigation, but ISP could not confirm many further details as of 9 p.m. Sunday.
“The investigation is in its infancy and to protect the integrity of the investigation, no additional details will be released at this time,” ISP said in a statement to FOX 2.
According to WFCN News, the shooting happened around 5 p.m. near the 900 block of East Kell Street in Centralia. Multiple law enforcement agencies have since responded to scene and multiple victims are hospitalized, according to the report.
It’s unclear how many people may have been injured and what led up to the shooting.
Centralia, Illinois is about 70 miles, or just over an hour, east of St. Louis.
This is a developing story. FOX 2 will update as more information becomes available.
The National Weather Service has teams of storm surveryors in the field April 18 investigating several reports of severe storms and tornado touch downs across eastern Iowa, northwest Illinois and northeast Missouri.
According to the weather service’s website, windgusts of up to 60 to 70 mph along with teacup-sized hail and several tornadoes were reported April 17.
Many homes and outbuildings were damaged, trees were uprooted and power lines were downed in Lena, Illinois, where the most significant damage occurred, the site pointed out.
Very strong winds also were reported near Washington, Iowa, and Colmar, Illinois, where several outbuildings and grain bins were destroyed.
The weather service received reports of confirmed and possible tornadoes in the areas of Lena, Pecatonica, Shirland, Rockton, Roscoe and Capron.
The teams will be assessing damage this weekend into next week along with county emergency management teams to determine what types of storms occurred and their paths.
Dozens of power outages were reported, as well.
As of the afternoon of April 18, ComEd was reporting 85 active power outages across northern Illinois, down from 241 on April 17, and 6,751 customers affected, down from more than 18,000.
The bulk of those outages and the most customers impacted are concentrated in Jo Daviess and Stephenson counties.
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