Descent to disgrace. Former Illinois Rep. Dennis Hastert has come to tentative terms in an out-of-court settlement with a man who accused him of child sexual abuse.
■ The deal came after the judge in the case ruled that the man would be named publicly if the trial proceeded.
■ A timeline tracks Hastert’s rise from suburban wrestling coach—when the abuse allegedly happened—to U.S. House speaker, where for eight years he was second in line of succession to the presidency.
A recall vote here? Politico’s Shia Kapos says a conservative dark-money group with an eye on California’s law is mounting a campaign to give Illinois voters the power to remove elected officials.
■ An Illinois Republican consultant tells Sun-Times D.C. bureau chief Lynn Sweet that Illinois Republicans need to decide whether they want to run candidates based on a Trump litmus test or risk losing suburban voters. (Cartoon: Keith J. Taylor.)
Dress for disorder. The former Donald Trump campaign staffer organizing Saturday’s “Justice for J6” Washington rally to support defendants charged in the Jan. 6 riot is warning participants not to wear clothing supporting either Trump or President Biden.
■ His threat in a tweet: “Anyone not honoring this request will be assumed to be an infiltrator and we will take your picture, find out who you are, and make you famous.”
■ The Conversation offers a guide to the symbols insurrectionists carried Jan. 6.
■ Reporters covering Saturday’s rally are being warned about their safety.
Deeper doo-doo. Chicago’s Board of Ethics sees probable cause that foul-mouthed Chicago Ald. Jim Gardiner broke the city’s ethics ordinance …
■ … specifically, anti-retaliation rules.
■ City Cast Chicago: “Gardiner is being investigated by a lot of people.”
Taking the money. Only six (update) five of the City Council’s 50 members have rejected an automatic 5.5% pay raise …
■ … despite editorials condemning the practice.
Nailed it. The Wall Street Journal—which bills itself as “the definitive source of news and information through the lens of business”—concludes the U.S. economic response to the pandemic succeeded in “pushing poverty in the opposite direction that usually occurs in recessions.”
■ For the year that ended June 30, Illinois Lottery sales jumped 22%.
■ Consumer Reports: How to be a smarter shopper, despite pandemic-fueled shortages, price spikes and delays.
Not a teacher. Mayor Lightfoot’s choice to head Chicago Public Schools lacks experience in the classroom.
■ COVID-19’s rise prompted more teachers to consider leaving the profession.
■ The Associated Press asks, “Can kids be harmed wearing masks to protect against COVID?” TLDR answer: Hell, no.
‘The Sauganash Sasquatch.’ That’s how the North Side crimewatch website CWBChicago refers to an elusive person or persons responsible for the theft of red-light cameras from one intersection three times.
■ Chicago’s widely denounced 6-mph-over-the-limit speed cameras are going nowhere fast.
Car-shopping? CARFAX says the used-vehicle market is, um, flooded with vehicles damaged in Hurricane Ida and other intense storms.
■ Illinois has more of them than 43 other states, and Chicago’s in the top 10 cities.
■ Global warming may be fueling a deadly fungal disease’s rise in the American West.
Facebook firestorm. Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg may be headed back to Congress to address Wall Street Journal reports that his company knew its Instagram platform was harming teenagers.
■ Bloomberg’s Naomi Nix: “Zuckerberg was right to identify truth and clarity as the bedrock of trust. He has just been doing a poor job living up to that promise.”
‘The Available City.’ The fourth Chicago Architecture Biennial opens Friday, with a focus on rethinking 13,000 city-owned vacant lots.
■ Elsewhere along the cultural spectrum tomorrow, the animated Chicago Party Aunt debuts on Netflix.
Are you public? Are you square? Are you (ever) in Chicago? An affirmative answer to any of those questions means a forthcoming batch of Chicago Public Square caps—in a new color!—is perfect for you. Keep reading every day for your chance to land one soon.