‘A call to action.’ ProPublica’s report on Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas’ secret luxury vacations paid for by billionaire Republican donor Harlan Crow have prompted Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin—chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee—to promise the committee “will act” on the need for justices to “be held to an enforceable code of conduct, just like every other federal judge.”
■ After the Los Angeles Times reported on Crow’s gifts to Thomas 20 years ago, Thomas just stopped disclosing them.
■ Connecticut Sen. Chris Murphy: “Congress cannot allow for judges to so brazenly flout conflict of interest rules.”
■ Esquire’s Charlie Pierce is skeptical: “Rules don’t apply here. And ethics experts? Please. Insects, at best.”
■ The Onion offers a mock “exclusive interview” in which Thomas asserts, “I will consult the authority that oversees me, which is me, on what consequences I should face, which I’ve decided are none.”
■ Daily Show guest host Roy Wood Jr.: “If you’re going to buy a Supreme Court justice … you could have bought Brett Kavanaugh for a bottle of Jager and a Southwest boarding pass.”
■ Also from The Onion: “Supreme Court Justices All Reading About Clarence Thomas Corruption Allegations From Different Mediterranean Yachts.”
■ Washington Post columnist Alexandra Petri drafts a speech Thomas could give: “Each moment I spent on the yacht was torment! That is why I did not disclose it.”
■ The White House was mum about the latest wrinkle in Joe Biden’s long history with Thomas.
‘Racist acts are nothing new to the state where the KKK was born.’ Michael Moore sees a silver lining in a decision by the Republican majority of the Tennessee House to expel two young black members for speaking out against the gun violence that claimed six lives in a school shooting last week.
Change is gonna come. Mayor Lightfoot welcomed Mayor-elect Brandon Johnson to her City Hall office yesterday.
■ Johnson told reporters, “We are going to be united.”
■ Chicago Teachers Union President Stacy Davis Gates on the prospect of a dispute between Johnson and his supporters at the union: “It means that we have high-quality problems.”
■ Across Illinois, reactionary school board candidates mostly met with defeat.
■ Columnist Neil Steinberg: “Turns out Paul Vallas wasn’t a Republican after all. How can I tell? Easy. His swift, gracious concession.”
■ The Sun-Times’ Lynn Sweet: Johnson’s victory plus Democratic advances in Wisconsin increase the odds Chicago will host the 2024 Democratic National Convention.
Questionable tweet. Chicago Police Department internal affairs investigators are looking into the department Twitter account’s liking of an anti-trans post …
■ … by country singer Travis Tritt.
■ A Biden administration proposal would forbid schools and colleges from an outright ban on transgender athletes, but would allow some limits to ensure fairness.
■ Block Club Chicago: Metro will stage a massive drag show to fund the fight against transphobic and anti-drag legislation across the country.
‘Chicago … should be walkable for everyone.’ An advocate for the visually impaired cheers a federal judge’s ruling that the city has violated the Americans with Disabilities Act by failing to provide audio signals to help people cross streets.
■ The city’s getting sued over the selection process for developers to give new life to an old bank building on the West Side.
■ From the Reader’s new Best of Chicago edition: “Best action to take when an unhoused Chicagoan is sleeping across three seats on the train.”
‘I’m oversharing because I have a hunch that cases could soon rise.’ Axios Chicago’s Monica Eng has COVID—again.
■ Chicago’s wastewater sampling backs up that hunch.
Peep down. Consumer Reports has launched a petition drive to get a carcinogen—one that’s been banned from cosmetics—out of Peeps marshmallows.
■ RetailMeNot’s annual survey of Americans’ favorite Easter candies finds Peeps registering hardly at all.
‘Schmicago!’ The Apple TV+s musical comedy/fantasy Schmigadoon!’s second season draws inspiration from a musical about a town its costars, Cecily Strong and Keegan-Michael Key, know well.
■ Critic Nina Metz, who “quickly lost patience” with the show’s first season “didn’t experience any of that with its move to Schmicago.”
■ Cord Cutter Weekly: A cheaper, ad-supported Disney+ plan is now available on Roku devices.
■ The Onion again: “Report Reveals Only Jeff Bezos Finished Watching Lord Of The Rings: Rings Of Power.”
Good Friday for a quiz. Marking a special week for three major forms of worship—“Judaism, Christianity and golf”—quizmaster and past Jeopardy! Tournament of Champions winner Fritz Holznagel has laid a fresh test of your news smarts.
■ If you beat your Square columnist’s 6/8 score, have an extra Pee—um, holiday treat.
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