Snow, man. As of early today: 17.7 inches of new snow at Midway …
■ … but O’Hare got less than half that much.
■ It’s Chicago’s snowiest stretch in more than 40 years …
■ … and it’s not gonna melt any time soon …
■ … but we have a way to go before breaking the 1978-79 record.
■ Reminder: This started off as one of Chicago’s mildest winters on record.
■ Chicago’s COVID-19 vaccination and testing sites are closed today.
■ Mayor Lightfoot is pleading for patience from residents whose side streets and alleys have become impassable.
■ Need help shoveling? Block Club Chicago has a list of neighborhood groups and aldermanic offices taking your calls.
‘Nobody wants to blow up.’ Columnist Neil Steinberg shares the literally chilling tale of what happened after he and his wife smelled gas in the house: “All the trivial crap that usually dominates my low-level consciousness has fallen away. Getting the heat back on is all that matters.”
■ Chicago’s plight is part of a multistate weather crisis—including a tornado in North Carolina, heavy snow and freezing rain in the Northeast, and record-setting cold from Mexico to Canada …
■ … including deadly single-digit temps in Texas, accompanied by a power outage for more than four million people …
■ … and a cell phone service outage to boot.
■ Update, 6:20 p.m.: This piece should have identified Bryce’s ties to the climate-science-denying Manhattan Institute. Here’s a more balanced look at the issue.
■ An earthquake in Japan last week has prompted Toyota to suspend vehicle production.
Trump’s fraught future. Sure, he was acquitted by the Senate—but now Donald Trump faces the prospect of legal action like this: A Democratic congressman is suing him, accusing him of inciting the deadly Jan. 6 insurrection at the Capitol.
■ PolitiFact runs down some of the leading investigations with the ex-president in their sights. (Cartoon: Keith J. Taylor.)
■ The Markup: “Trump’s False Posts Were Treated with Kid Gloves by Facebook.”
■ Historians are ripping ex-Trump UN Ambassador—and rumored future presidential candidate—Nikki Haley for a Presidents Day tweet that screwed up the facts on George Washington.
■ The Onion: “Something About The Way Society Was Exposed As Complete Illusion Over Past Year Really Getting Man Down Today.”
In for governor. Add ex-Illinois Republican State Sen. Paul Schimpf to the list of those aiming for Gov. Pritzker’s seat in 2022.
■ Democrats are tagging him a “Rauner/Trump acolyte.”
■ FiveThirtyEight: “The Trumpiest Republicans Are At The State And Local Levels—Not In D.C.”
Tribune’s last hope. One man stands between the newspaper’s parent company and its predatory suitor, Alden Global Capital.
■ The Conversation: “46,218 news transcripts show ideologically extreme politicians get more airtime.”
A happier note. Block Club Chicago shares the story of a couple who marked the 20th anniversary of their first date at Club Lucky by leaving the staff a $2,000 tip.
■ Happy Paczki Day.
■ Where to get some in the Chicago area.