U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin, an Illinois Democrat and assistant Senate
majority leader, announced Tuesday that the Obama administration will
purchase the unused Thomson prison from the state of Illinois for $165
million.
Durbin hailed the acquisition as an instance of
collaboration between Gov. Pat Quinn and the U.S. Justice Department
Federal Bureau of Prisons. “This historic action will lead to the
creation of hundreds of construction jobs and over 1,000 permanent jobs
at this facility,” Durbin said in a statement.
Cheri Bustos, the
Democratic nominee in the 17th congressional district that includes the
village of Thomson, said the sale was “great news because there should
be no higher priority than putting people in our district back to work,”
in an e-mailed statement.
While the agreement might indeed prove a boon
to an economically troubled region, it emerged out of exasperation with
U.S. Rep. Frank Wolf (R-Virginia), chairman of the House appropriations
subcommittee that controls the Justice Department budget. Read more »
In the second presidential debate, undecided voters asked the
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Thousands of low-income families throughout Illinois could lose food
aid if Congress passes the deep cuts to federal assistance currently
being proposed in the U.S. House of Representatives, according to the
findings of a 
As election season heats up, the battle for control of Congress may come down to the outcome of several key races in Illinois.