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Quick Hit
by Nathan Greenhalgh
2:30pm
Thu Feb 9

Lessons From Emanuel's Social Media Successes Could Help 2012 Candidates

The use of Facebook in Rahm Emanuel’s successful 2011 mayoral campaign could offer progressive causes — and candidates — important lessons in utilizing the social network to galvanize support.

“The ’08 campaign taught everyone in politics that by talking to people where they are, on Twitter and Facebook, you could quickly get your point across to them,” said Thomas Bowen, executive director of Emanuel’s political action committee, New Chicago Committee. “I’ll give you one example. We knew that early voting would be very important, so we used Facebook to push specific messages, even during specific time periods. If it was a weekend, you saw something like ‘your early voting location is open now’ ads.”

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PI Original
by Ellyn Fortino
12:54pm
Wed Feb 8
2 comments

Report Reveals How River Reversal Could Protect Great Lakes, Reduce Coal Access

Environment

A new report that called for reversing the flow of the Chicago River to curb the invasion of Asian Carp into the Great Lakes may have gained attention from top Illinois politicians, but experts are already raising concerns about the proposal, including its price tag.

PI Original
by Matthew Blake
4:21pm
Tue Feb 7
2 comments

A New Attempt To Deal With Foreclosed, Vacant Properties

Housing

Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn has announced a new pilot program aimed at assisting homeowners and rehabilitating vacant, foreclosed upon properties in Cook County.

Quick Hit
by Brandon Campbell
11:52am
Tue Feb 7
3 comments

Chicagoans Far From Optimistic About Declining Unemployment Rate (VIDEO)

For 32 years Janet Edburg worked as a laborer at Northbrook-based Leedal, Inc. helping to manufacture laboratory equipment like stainless steel sinks.

A mother of three, Edburg became a victim of corporate downsizing in 2008, and lacking a high-school diploma she has struggled to find work since then.

“I’ve gone into a very deep depression, even felt suicidal,” Edburg said at a Chicago Jobs with Justice rally on Friday afternoon. “One of my comrades here took me in. I was ready to be off on the streets, homeless. And if it wasn’t for him I would be.”

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Quick Hit
by David Milton Brent
1:33pm
Mon Feb 6

New Super PAC Readying For Battle With Illinois Tea Party Congressman

CREDO Mobile, a San Francisco-based company that sells cell phones and phone plans, has started a super PAC aimed at defeating Tea Party congress members in the 2012 election cycle. One of their primary targets? Illinois’ 8th district representative Joe Walsh.

”This is a guy who self-identifies as a ‘crazy Tea Party freshman’ [congressman],” Becky Bond, CREDO’s Political Director and the head of CREDO SuperPAC, said of Walsh. “This guy is concerned that government spending is gonna put too much of a burden on our children in the future, and yet [he] doesn’t even pay his own child support. This guy shouldn’t be in Congress.”
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