‘Took you idiots long enough.’ Sun-Times columnist Neil Steinberg emits a “whoop of joy” for Congress’ passage of that trillion-dollar national infrastructure bill.
■ Columnist Charlie Madigan gives President Biden the W: “We simply have to give up on the idea that Washington is so messy that nothing can ever happen.”
■ The Sun-Times’ Lynn Sweet, spells out where Illinois’ estimated $17 billion share is likely to go—including expansion of broadband internet access to virtually everywhere.
■ If they show up for ribbon-cutting at projects funded by the plan, remind these Illinois Republicans that they voted against it.
■ The Conversation: The bill will pay for removing some stuff, too—including highways that have isolated Black neighborhoods.
Ricketts benches self. Cubs co-owner and Wilmette resident Todd Ricketts is stepping down from the Republican National Committee finance chairmanship—maybe to consider seeking office himself.
■ A Trib editorial condemns ex-Republican gubernatorial candidate Jeanne Ives for bringing “The Big Lie” about the last election to DuPage County.
‘You lied to everyone.’ FOX NFL commentator—and ex Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback—Terry Bradshaw let COVID-19-positive Aaron Rodgers have it during Sunday’s pregame show.
■ Those State Farm ads featuring Rodgers? Bradshaw’s replacing him.
(Cartoon: Keith J. Taylor.)
‘Horrible and embarrassing.’ The Tribune explains how crumbling infrastructure left thousands in a Chicago suburb without “a human right”: Clean water.
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‘I wouldn’t be a clown here on TV today if it weren’t for the abortion I had the day before my 23rd birthday.’ Ex-Oak Parker Cecily Strong is winning widespread praise for a personal-not-personal message about abortion rights on Saturday Night Live.
■ Reaction on Reddit: “I was chuckling to myself until it landed when Colin called her Cecily, and then I just fell quiet.”
■ See the segment here.
■ In a 2014 interview, she said she worked at Planned Parenthood’s Chicago corporate office for a long time.
‘I’m angry.’ The father of one of two Neuqua Valley High School graduates who died in a crowd surge toward the stage at Houston’s disastrous Astroworld Festival asks The Daily Beast, “Who’s gonna pay the price for the life of these people?”
■ Another Chicago-area victim was studying journalism at Southern Illinois University, which is offering students grief counseling.
■ A survivor tells BuzzFeed News: “I thought I was going to die.”
■ Officials were slow to release the names of the dead, who reportedly ranged from 14 to 27 years old.
■ Houston’s police chief reportedly had voiced his crowd control concerns to the festival’s impresario, Travis Scott.
Evanston RoundTable is, like Chicago Public Square,
a member of the Chicago Independent Media Alliance.
Workweek revolution. The Sun-Times’ David Roeder says the pandemic has powered a growing push toward three-day weekends.
■ Ben Smith in The New York Times: “Labor has become a hot news beat.”
Square loses a reader. Friday’s issue pushed one subscriber too far—someone who canceled with this explanation: “Hard to read. Too many links.” If you know someone not so hyperlink-averse, help replenish the circulation ranks by recommending your friends read this …
■ … and not what Popular Information calls a “massive network of fake local news sites” out to weaponize Critical Race Theory …
■ … a network led by a guy who precipitated a journalistic fiasco at the Trib (2012 link).