Illinois
Trump refuses to commit to not advocating government overthrow in Illinois election filing
Trump refuses to commit to not advocating government overthrow in Illinois election filing
Former President Donald Trump has declined to assure Illinois election officials that he will not advocate to overthrow the government.
CHICAGO – Former President Donald Trump has declined to assure Illinois election officials that he will not advocate to overthrow the government.
President Joe Biden is questioning the absence of a signed loyalty oath with Trump’s paperwork for the March 19 ballot in Illinois. While the oath is not mandatory, it is customary in the state.
Trump, despite denying involvement in the attempt to overturn the last presidential election, faces challenges to his candidacy in multiple states.
Illinois Challenges Trump’s Candidacy, Citing 14th Amendment
Illinois has become the 18th state to challenge Donald Trump’s candidacy for the 2024 elections. Voting rights groups across the nation are questioning Trump’s eligibility under the 14th Amendment’s rarely used Insurrection Clause, referring to his actions on January 6, 2021. A group of five voters in Illinois filed the challenge, leading the state election board to express doubts about its authority to disqualify a presidential candidate using the clause.
Illinois State Board of Elections Expresses Doubts
The Illinois State Board of Elections has raised questions about its authority to invoke the Insurrection Clause to disqualify a presidential candidate. The challenge alleges that Trump, after losing the 2020 election, played a role in inciting the Capitol riot on January 6, 2021. The board suggests that the state’s courts or legislature should resolve the dispute. The board is set to address 32 other objections to the proposed ballot at its January 11 meeting.
Tug of War Between Biden and Trump
As the Illinois primary approaches on March 19, both President Joe Biden and Donald Trump engage in a tug of war, each accusing the other of being a threat to democracy. The 87-page challenge document outlines Trump’s alleged role in inciting the Capitol riot, leaving five dead and over 100 injured. The Illinois State Board of Elections will consider challenges to presidential nominating petitions through January 12, according to state election law.
Illinois
Lake County detectives rescue girl from man they say drove to Illinois from Georgia to meet her
Detectives from Lake County, Illinois, Sheriff’s office rescued a girl under 14 from a grown man who had traveled from Georgia to meet her this weekend, authorities said Sunday.
At 4:40 a.m. Saturday, Lake County sheriff’s deputies were called to unincorporated Gurnee for a report of a missing girl under the age of 14. Deputies learned the girl had never run away before, and it was especially concerning that she did so in the middle of the night, authorities said.
Sheriff’s detectives learned the girl’s cellphone was not functioning, and she could not be found through any of her electronic devices. Detectives also found that a 24-year-old man from Norcross, Georgia, named Jordy Alexis Fuerte Perez had been communicating with her, authorities said.
Detectives learned that Fuerte Perez had made plans to drive to Illinois from Georgia and pick up the girl, and evidence indicates he told the girl he wanted a “romantic relationship” with her, authorities said.
Detectives homed in on a vehicle that Fuerte Perez may have been driving, and found the vehicle at the Independence Grove Forest Preserve near Libertyville, authorities said. Both Fuerte Perez and the girl were in the car in a parking lot when detectives arrived at 6 p.m. Saturday, authorities said.
The girl did not appear to be injured, but was taken to the Lake County Children’s Advocacy Center for specialized advocacy and attention, authorities said.
Fuerte Perez was charged with two counts of solicitation of child pornography, and one count of unlawful possession of a controlled substance, namely cocaine. More charges ar likely, authorities said.
“This type of case is a parent’s worst nightmare. Our Criminal Investigations Division took this case seriously and worked tirelessly from the moment the girl was reported missing until she was safely located,” Lake County Sherif John Idleburg said in a news release. “While there will undoubtedly be a long road to recovery and healing, I am grateful the victim was found safe and is physically okay. I am proud of everyone who played a role in rescuing this young girl and bringing the offender to the first steps of justice.”
Fuerte Perez was due in court on Sunday morning. The Lake County State’s Attorney’s office is asking to have him held while awaiting trial.
Illinois
Illinois Prison Closure Deepens Small Town’s Fears
In Lincoln, Ill., another pillar just fell. The New York Times’ Julie Bosman reports that the state plans to close Logan Correctional Center, a women’s prison that employs more than 500 people, stripping the Route 66 town of about 13,000 of one of its last major, stable job sources. State officials say the nearly century-old complex is too deteriorated to fix and will be replaced by a new, modern facility in Crest Hill, outside Chicago. Capitol News Illinois reports the Illinois Department of Corrections estimates it’ll take five years to build the new prison.
In Lincoln, where factories, a glass plant, and even a 157-year-old college have already called it quits, that decision feels like one more hit—and one that favors the Chicago area over downstate. Residents and local leaders, who spent years lobbying to keep the prison, now worry about a fresh wave of departures as families follow jobs elsewhere, further straining schools and small businesses already on the edge. For a look at what the loss of a single prison means for one Midwestern town—which takes particular pride in the fact it was uniquely named for Abraham Lincoln before he became president—read the full piece.
Illinois
Illinois GOP chair says Obama Center is political operation on public land | Fox News Video
Illinois Republican Party Chairman Bob Grogan says the Obama Presidential Center functions as a political operation and headquarters for the Obama Foundation rather than a traditional presidential library.
Illinois Republican Party Chairman Bob Grogan says the Obama Presidential Center functions as a political operation and headquarters for the Obama Foundation rather than a traditional presidential library. Grogan discusses public land, taxpayer-funded infrastructure, the Center’s endowment shortfall and why critics continue to oppose the project.
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