Illinois state Sen. Sam McCann, R-Plainview, announced early Thursday that he plans run as a third-party candidate for governor of Illinois, with this new announcement we will see more issues for Republican Governor Bruce Rauner.
Rauner is widely viewed as an underdog in the race for the state's highest office against billionaire J.B. Pritzker. McCann's campaign with the Conservative Party stands to draw votes away from Rauner, who had alienated a lot of his conservative base. Rauner barely defeated state Rep. Jeanne Ives in the Republican primary this March.
"When I announced I was not going to run for Senate, I said the Republican Party under Rauner was unrecognizable to me," McCann said in a statement. "Rauner has smeared the reputations of proven conservatives and abandoned the principles that millions of Illinois' working families hold dear: economic liberty, traditional values, and law and order."
This will be a new venture surly causing a huge shake up in our Illinois gubernatorial race this coming fall.
The United Nations Security Council has failed to approve a Russian-drafted resolution on Saturday that would have condemned "the aggression against the Syrian Arab Republic by the U.S. and its allies in violation of international law and the U.N. Charter."
U.S., British and French forces railed Syria with more than 110 missiles on early Saturday morning, in response to a chemical attack that killed more than 60 people last week, in the largest intervention by Western powers against Syrian President Bashar Assad.
Putin said the U.S. actions in Syria made the humanitarian catastrophe worse and caused pain for civilians and the government.
"Russia in the most serious way condemns the attack on Syria where Russian military servicemen help the legitimate government to fight terrorism," Putin said.
The question being whispered across the world tonight is did world war three just start? Well the answer at this point is no one knows. With the US and allies bombing Syria this evening it will surely cause a stir leading to more sanctions and possibly even more military action in the west. But realistically this could be a world war three hit or miss. As Russia and other allies of Syria have warned the US and allies to stand down they must now somehow in a show of strength make a move.
As president trump and allies are finishing up a round of air strikes, Syrian officials as well as Russian official must now figure out exactly how to react to the situation at hand. Less than 20 hours ago Russia warned the United States that an airstrike could spark war and now the move has been made on our part to move forward with an air strike. In the coming hours we will see where this military conflict leads the United States and Russia who are once again on cold war terms. In a statement, Antoly Antonov said, "We warned that such actions will not be left without consequences.
"All responsibility for them rests with Washington, London and Paris. Insulting the President of Russia is unacceptable and inadmissible," Antonov added.
We will see in coming days exactly what is in store for future relations between the US and Russia.
(PS) As of 2 hours ago the United States, France and the UK officially began dropping bombs on Syria. "A combined operation with the armed forces of France and the United Kingdom is now underway," President Trump said in an address to the nation. This coming just days after Syria was accused of using chemical weapons on its citizens for the 50th time in the last 7 years of the nations civil war. President Bashar al-Assad of Syria along with Russia pointed the chemical attack at British military in the last 72 hrs accusing the British of causing the initial chemical attack. The US and allies stated earlier in the week that they in fact had evidence proving the attack was linked to Bashar and his regime. Three targets were listed as the Pentagon spoke on Friday evening.
A chemical weapons storage facility west of Homs
A chemical weapons equipment storage and an important command post, also near Homs
A scientific research facility in Damascus, allegedly connected to the production chemical and biological weapons
The US Secretary of Defense James Mattis told reporters there were no reports of losses in the operation. This report coming in the last few hours. The US and allies now await response from Syria and or its allies North Korea and Russia. With multiple verbal warnings back and fourth we will move forward to see what is coming in the following days.
It’s proper that House Speaker Michael Madigan acknowledges his failure to be a leader in the fight against sexual harassment and bullying in Illinois government and politics. It’s also stunning, given his clenched grip on power and his reluctance to take responsibility for the state of this state. We can’t remember the last time Madigan publicly displayed such humility.
“Everyone has a right to work without fear of harassment, abuse or retaliation. We haven’t done enough. I take responsibility,” he told his Democratic Party minions.
What comes next?
Whenever a leader in crisis pledges to “do better,” that promise comes with an implicit plea for support: Please, trust me to fix this problem. Or have I squandered my credibility?
Assessing Madigan’s vulnerability is difficult because he’s such a dominant figure. This is his 48th year in the General Assembly, his 34th year as speaker, his 20th year as chair of the Illinois Democratic Party. How many times has he even faced a serious challenge to his authority? A long line of governors from both major parties thought about taking him on, and a few made meager attempts. Then they caved. The current governor, Republican Bruce Rauner, is the first ever to mount a sustained resistance to Madigan.
Now we are witnessing a political uprising against Madigan by a force he cannot ignore and may not outmaneuver: Female Democratic politicians — at first disappointingly, almost deafeningly quiet — have begun telling Madigan his promises to change the culture in Illinois aren’t enough. State Rep. Kelly Cassidy of Chicago wants an independent investigation of Madigan's organizations to “rip the Band-Aid off” mistreatment. So does state Sen. Melinda Bush of Grayslake. Other Democrats, some in the thick of the primary campaign, are chiming in. Candidate for governor Chris Kennedy wants Madigan to resign as party chairman. So does Marie Newman, running for Congress against Madigan ally Rep. Dan Lipinski.
Madigan invited this fragging. He has no credibility on this issue. When the #MeToo anti-harassment movement gripped Illinois in the fall, he pushed the General Assembly to pass legislation meant to curb predatory behavior in government. It was an act. At the same time he was promoting respect, safety and equality, he learned that one of his political aides, Kevin Quinn, allegedly had been harassing a campaign worker. Yet instead of firing Quinn, Madigan asked his lawyer to investigate and sat on the findings — until the Tribune was about to report on the matter. Then he fired Quinn.
Days later, Madigan cut ties with a second confidante, identified in news reports as lobbyist and high-ranking Madigan campaign staffer Shaw Decremer. Madigan chose to describe the deposed aide as a “volunteer,” as if Decremer were some anonymous figure distributing leaflets on the Southwest Side.
Madigan won’t give up control without a fight. He appeared to acquiesce Monday to calls for an independent investigation, but then said his own designated outside attorney would “assist.” That's not independent. And it fools no one.
Don’t look to Madigan to be an agent of change. His obsession is power politics. If only we’d also heard him say he must “do better” to balance the state budget, to solve the public pension crisis he helped create, to help employers and make Illinois a magnet for jobs.
No, Madigan is an effective advocate only for his own interests. We’ve called repeatedly for him and his Springfield partner, Chicago Democrat and Senate President John Cullerton, to step out of leadership. Like former Senate Minority Leader Christine Radogno, they should make way for fresh talent.
It’s on other Illinois Democrats — his caucus members, other officeholders but also voters — to force Madigan's hand. At minimum here must be an independent investigation of his legislative offices and political operations to detail precisely how he handled allegations of harassment and bullying. Beyond that, Democrats have to decide whether, for the good and reputation of their party and the legislature, Madigan should shed some of his titles.
Short of that thorough investigation by an expert with zero ties to the Illinois political class, though, the results will be tainted and the message clear: In Illinois, the powerful are free to protect their own.
A number of Florida politicians are facing public pressure to act after 17 students were killed during a deadly mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland last week — blowback that advocates hope could bring about some type of reform in the gun-friendly state.
What that reform would look like and whether it would have an effect on the 2018 midterm election remains to be seen.
On Tuesday, Florida House Republicans rejected a procedural move that would have allowed debate of a Democratic bill that would have banned military-style, semi-automatic rifles and high capacity magazines in the state. State lawmakers made the move under the watchful gaze of students who survived the Feb. 14 massacre and who were watching from the gallery breaking down in tears as the vote came down.
Colin Hackley/Reuters
Tyra Hemans, a senior from Marjory Stoneman Douglas (MSD) High School, holds a photo of her friend Joaquin Oliver, who died during last week's mass shooting on campus, as she speaks with the Florida Senate, in Tallahassee, Fla., Feb. 21, 2018.more +
“There are a lot of people who own guns and believe in the right to own guns in Florida,” Beth Rosenson, a political science professor, at the University of Florida told ABC News. She described a culture in a state where “many people own a gun, many people hunt.”
But there is an expectation that the state legislature will do something to respond to the public pressure, she said.
“The legislature will respond in some way so Members can say they’ll do something,” she said. “They’re not that stupid. They realize they have to do something. They can’t do nothing.”
One option would be for state lawmakers to raise the legal age to buy a gun to 21. But it’s unlikely lawmakers would go as far as to ban assault weapons as some advocates have proposed, political science experts say.
Two statewide races could be affected by what happens in Tallahassee over the next few weeks.
In the state’s gubernatorial race, some candidates appear to be treading carefully in the wake of the mass shooting in Parkland, Fla.
On Thursday, less than 24 hours after the shooting, Florida Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam, a Republican running for governor, postponed a hearing on a bill that would have allowed his department to make conceal carry permitting easier for applicants. Although, the original legislation focused mostly on oyster harvesting, on page 87 of the 98-page bill was a provision that would have allowed the department to automatically approve conceal carry permit applications if not approved within 90 days.
Putnam, in July, tweeted he was a "proud NRA sellout" in response to an opinion piece from a Florida columnist with the headline "Adam Putnam sells out to the NRA."
A notable no vote in Tuesday’s House session to not hear a bill on banning assault rifles was Republican Florida House Speaker Richard Corcoran, who is expected to announce he is running for governor when the state legislature session ends.
On the Democratic side, two days after the shooting former Congresswoman and Democratic candidate for governor Gwen Graham called for outgoing GOP Gov. Rick Scott to immediately suspend permitting and sales of AR-15s and all assault weapons.
All three of Graham’s Democratic opponents followed suit calling for a ban on assault rifles.
One of her rivals, former Miami Beach Mayor Phil Levine, released a television ad about the issue, marking one of the first times Democrats have made gun control a central issue in a Florida election.
The issue could be a particularly thorny one for Scott to negotiate.
He is term-limited out of the governor’s mansion and is said to be considering a challenge to Democratic Sen. Bill Nelson. Scott told reporters Tuesday afternoon – after he held a 90-minute roundtable with law enforcement, education and mental health leaders — that “everything is on the table” when it comes to proposals on new gun restrictions.
Scott's office highlights his signing of legislation to prioritize adding school resource officers and legislation that added millions to counterterrorism and intelligence efforts. He also has proposed increasing the Safe Schools fund by an extra $14 million in 2015-2016 and an additional $10 million every subsequent year, according to John Tupps, Scott's communications director.
Wilfredo Lee/AP
Florida Gov. Rick Scott gestures as he speaks during a news conference near Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla., where a former student is killed at least 17 people on Feb. 14, 2018.more +
Sen. Marco Rubio has also faced criticism in the wake of the deadly shooting at a high school in his home state. An activist group, Avaaz, posted a trio of mobile billboards in Miami last week asking why there's no congressional movement on gun control, according to the Miami Herald.
“How come, Marco Rubio?” one of the billboards read.
Rubio office did not respond to ABC News' request for comment.
Nelson's office pointed out that he is a cosponsor of legislation in the Senate to ban the sale of assault weapons.
Both lawmakers traveled to the region after last week's shooting.
"Rubio's in a position where he doesn’t have to worry about re-election for a few years so it's less important what he thinks and says, at least politically speaking, as compared to Nelson who's going to be on the ballot in November and who's going to be presumably facing the current Gov. Rick Scott," said Michael Binder, an associate professor of political science at the University of North Florida.
There will also be national players involved in the Florida races.
During the 2016 election cycle, the NRA spent $54 million in the presidential and congressional races, nearly $20 million of which went to attacking Hillary Clinton while more than $11 million was spent in Donald Trump’s favor.
Adding her voice to the fight is former congresswoman and mass shooting survivor Gabby Giffords, who called out Scott over what she sees as his inaction on gun violence and ties to the NRA by rolling out a “six-figure ad buy” to air a TV commercial targeting the governor.
Meanwhile, as the lawmakers mull their positions in some cases and level criticism at the other side in others, the survivors of gun violence are determined to make themselves heard.
Students from Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School swarmed the state Capitol building this week to demand tougher gun laws. They are scheduled to have been 40 and 60 meetings on Wednesday, including with state Attorney General Pam Bondi, Senate President Joe Negron and with Corcoran, the state house speaker.
Time is not on their side to see legislation get passed and end up on Scott’s desk. The state legislature ends its session on March 9, which gives lawmakers two and a half weeks to pass something. And there is no carry-over of legislation to the next session.
Colin Hackley/Reuters
Students from Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School leave the Tucker Civic Center where they slept and prepare to speak with Florida state legislators, following last week's mass shooting on their campus, in Tallahassee, Fla.more +
Then there are concerns from lawmakers about the electoral consequences of their actions.
Most voters don’t vote on a gun control as a single issue, political experts say.
And, in other states, lawmakers have seen fallout from voting for stricter gun control laws. In Colorado, two Democratic state senators lost in a 2013 special election after providing crucial support for a package of state gun laws in the wake of the Aurora theater shooting.
The political push for gun policy reform in Florida could also play out in races across the country as students join their Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School brethren. Several hundred students from Washington D.C. area schools walked out of their schools on Wednesday afternoon and converged on Capitol Hill to protest the lack of action on gun reform.
They held signs and chanted and, like the Parkland survivors, eloquently spoke about the need for more gun safety laws as they marched down the National Mall toward the White House.
Other students, including some from Parkland, Fla., are at the White House this afternoon to meet with Trump, Vice President Pence and Education Secretary Betsy DeVos.
“This afternoon the President will host a conversation on how to improve school safety. He will hear from students, parents and educators who have directly experienced these horrific tragedies. In attendance will be students from Parkland’s Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School; representatives from Sandy Hook Promise and Rachel’s Challenge; local students, parents, and teachers,” according to a White House statement.
Meanwhile, George Clooney and other celebrities said they will attend the March 24 "March for Our Lives" in Washington D.C. in honor of the Florida victims which could bring more attention to the issue.
Experts question whether the attention will be enough to hasten reform and whether the public pressure will have impact on election day?
“Could this be the event that galvanizes people? Maybe. Looking back on history there’s a very steep mountain that has to be climbed here by proponents for gun control,” Michael McDonald, a political science professor and an expert in voting at the University of Florida, told ABC News.
“It takes something special for an event to be persistent in the public consciousness. And it’s difficult sometimes to know what that event is going to be.”
He noted that “these transformative events are rare and far between” but “if we’re still talking about this in six months we know we’ve gone through a transformative event.”
ABC News' MaryAlice Parks, Meghan Keneally, Ali Rogin, Alexander Mallin and Soo Rin Kim contributed to this report.
"Lauren Staley-Ferry charged with Felony in 2003 and never showed up for her court hearing"
Will County Board member Lawren Staley-Ferry was charged in 2003 with felony forgery and never appeared in court for the case. Now as she has just filed as a candidate for Will County Clerk this information has become unearthed.
The charges were filed in 2003 in Maricopa County, Arizona. Before the finalization of the charges, Staley-Ferry moved to Wisconsin. According to Maricopa County court documents, the charges alleged that Staley-Ferry had taken a check from her place of employment filling it out in her name without her employer's knowledge. Independent Captial Group then filled these charges in Scottsdale, Arizona in July of 2012.
Then in April 2013, a warrant was issued for Staley-Ferry's arrest as was stated by Amanda Jacinto, a spokesperson for the Maricopa County. By that time Staley-Ferry was back in Wisconsin.
She was then sent a summons to appear in court which she failed to do. Staley-Ferry said she did not know about the charges until she was already out of Arizona. The charges were dropped in 2012. Then in 2013, the warrant was filed.
Staley-Ferry was represented by an attorney and never did appear in court for this issue. Now 14 years later this information was released right before the clerk's race.
