‘Was drunk.’ The wife of Chicago Ald. Ricardo Munoz has filed for an order of protection from him, complaining he’d been drinking all day before his arrest on a charge of domestic battery.
■ Politico Illinois notes ironic timing in Munoz’ arrest.
And then there were 15. Two more Chicago mayoral candidates have lost their bids to make the ballot.
■ If you were planning to vote early in Chicago’s municipal election, hold your horses.
Trigger foods. Federal prosecutors say the Chicago’s Finest Deli on Wheels truck was also selling stolen guns.
■ The Chicago area’s first expressway to experience a shooting in 2019: The Eisenhower.
■ Dramatic video shows a Chicago cop shooting a man on Halloween night.
A ‘liberal revolt’? The Washington Post says moderate Democrats taking control of the House today face a rebellion from the newbies …
■ But, Mother Jones’ Kevin Drum says, “We Are Really Lowering the Bar for Rebellions These Days.”
■ Illinois’ Lauren Underwood becomes Congress’ youngest black female member ever.
■ CNN: “No other Congress has ever looked like this.”
■ A Quartz calculator lets you see how much more or less the new Congress resembles you.
Trump’s new world. CNN’s Chris Cillizza: “Yesterday was the last easy-ish day of his presidency.”
■ ThinkProgress: “House Democrats have a plan to actually drain the swamp.”
■ The president’s new acting Interior secretary will come under scrutiny for his time as a fossil fuel lobbyist.
■ Scientific American: Florida officials “weren’t allowed to mutter the phrase ‘climate change’ under outgoing Gov. Rick Scott (R). Whether that changes under [new Gov. Ron] DeSantis remains to be seen” …
■ … but a member of DeSantis’ environmental transition team—former Shedd Aquarium SVP Roger Germann—tells your Square publisher on LinkedIn the answer is “Yes.”
Tales from the far side. China says its Chang’e 4 probe is the first to land softly on the other side of the moon.
■ One analyst sees the mission as “a steppingstone … to colonize the moon and use it as a vast supply of energy.”
It started in Chicago. Lifetime’s documentary series Surviving R. Kelly—debuting tonight—begins its tale of how he got away with sexually abusing girls for decades by taking viewers back to Chicago in the ’70s, when he was “a shy kid with an obvious musical talent.”
■ A Chicago Public Schools teacher has been removed from the classroom as he faces charges of teenage sex abuse.
■ The Chicago schools’ inspector general’s latest report details how an ex-Chicago high school music teacher dumped $13,000 raised by his choir into a personal checking account …
■ … and how some Chicago schools employees have been cheating to get their kids into the city’s top-ranked schools.
‘We strongly encourage fans to not bring any bags.’ The Bears have spelled out what you can and can’t take into Soldier Field for Sunday’s playoff game …
■ … but they’ll be giving away towels.
Smartphone ‘superpowers.’ Consumer Reports rounds up a list of cool things that your phone can do but that you probably didn’t know about.
■ Mashable: “It’s official: iPhones are too expensive.”
■ Updating coverage: Apple’s
Condolences … to Chicago’s veteran media watchdog, Robert Feder, and his family on the death of his wife, Janet.
Thanks … to a New Year’s influx of Chicago Public Square supporters, listed on this page. Join them here.