Residents of the 8th congressional district are terrified that their
Social Security and Medicare benefits are going to be cut, U.S. Rep.
Tammy Duckworth (D, IL-8) said after an hourlong meet and greet with
constituents in Elgin this weekend.
“They’re barely making ends
meet,” Duckworth told Progress Illinois at her third Congress at Your
Corner event, held at the Gail Borden Library. “Whatever we do to
balance our nation’s budget, it cannot be on the backs of these people.” Read more »
Environmentalists and public health advocates at today’s demonstration against fracking at the Thompson Center
say the Illinois Hydraulic Fracturing Regulatory Act, which has earned
the support of Gov. Pat Quinn, doesn’t go far enough to protect the environment or ground
and drinking water. Progress Illinois was there to learn more about why they are calling for a two-year fracking moratorium.
Executives at British Petroleum insist it is not the only company at fault for the 2010 Gulf of Mexico disaster at the Macondo well, which caused an explosion that killed 11 men, sank a rig and spewed more than 4 million barrels of crude oil into the ocean.
The Environmental Protection Agency has announced that BP will be banned from entering into new contracts with the federal government as a result of 2010's Deepwater Horizon oil spill.
Dold is not the poster child for the Tea Party. But the more
important fact for 10th district voters in Cook and Lake Counties is
that their representative mostly sided with a rightward-moving Republican Party. We offer a closer look at the 10th congressional district race between incumbent Robert Dold and Democratic challenger Brad Schneider.
The following op-ed is byBrooke Anderson, Press Secretary to Governor Pat Quinn.
Nobody is more committed to improving life for working families than
Governor Quinn. Some of your readers will recall that back in 1993,
Governor Quinn was among the few elected officials to stand
with organized labor in opposing NAFTA. For three decades,
he advocated for a humane minimum wage and workers’ rights. He has
joined union brothers and sisters on more picket lines than any Illinois
Governor in memory, dating back to his meeting César Chávez in the
1970s. Governor Quinn organized the Citizens Utility Board – along with
groups like the Labor Coalition for Public Utilities – which has saved
Illinois consumers $10 billion in utility rate reductions and refunds
since 1985.
Since he became governor, jobs have been Governor
Quinn’s number one priority. And his efforts have produced solid results
for the working people of Illinois.
On Monday afternoon, a group of protestors outside the James
R. Thompson Center called for a moratorium on hydraulic fracturing in southern
Illinois.
At the rally, Southern
Illinoisians Against Fracturing our Environment (SAFE) protested the practice
of hydraulic fracturing. Known as fracking for short, the oil and gas drilling
technique injects a mix of water, sand, and chemicals into the ground to create
cracks in deep rock layers. The cracks release natural gas. (Read PI’s previous
reporting on fracking here.)
Proponents of fracking say it will supply America with its
own source of natural gas, but SAFE contends the process contaminates drinking
water and pollutes farmland. The group doesn’t believe enough information has
been gathered on the effect fracking has on the environment, and its members
met with one of Gov.
Pat Quinn’s representatives before the rally.
With ties to Occupy Chicago about a dozen protesters covered
themselves in fake oil and performed a symbolic death in front of the
Canadian Consulate in downtown Chicago Thursday evening.
Those who “died” were joined by more than 100 supporters in protesting Canada’s extracting of crude oil from the Alberta Tar Sands, which is the world’s third-largest deposit of oil. The protesters pointed to a recent report
which said the oil derived from the tar sands could emit 10 to 12 times
more greenhouse gases than conventional crude oils, and the Chicago Tribune recently reported that the increased level of emissions could be as high as 22 percent. Read more »
Residents of the 8th congressional district are terrified that their
Social Security and Medicare benefits are going to be cut, U.S. Rep.
Tammy Duckworth (D, IL-8) said after an hourlong meet and greet with
constituents in Elgin this weekend.
The following op-ed is by Brooke Anderson, Press Secretary to Governor Pat Quinn.
On Monday afternoon, a group of protestors outside the James
R. Thompson Center called for a moratorium on hydraulic fracturing in southern
Illinois. 
With ties to Occupy Chicago about a dozen protesters covered
themselves in fake oil and performed a symbolic death in front of the
Canadian Consulate in downtown Chicago Thursday evening. 