Well, it’s not gonna help. Democrats are concerned the first-ever indictment of a sitting New York City mayor—Eric Adams, a Democrat—will hurt Kamala Harris’ presidential campaign.
■ Updating coverage: Adams, an ex-cop, was to be arraigned in court this morning on charges of taking illegal campaign contributions and free overseas trips.
■ Law professor and former U.S. attorney Joyce Vance: “Adams did not disclose any of them. Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito would be proud.”
■ Jimmy Fallon: “It’s always fun when the city mimics the exact plot of a Batman movie.”
■ Adams is one of columnist Lyz Lenz’s two Dinguses of the Week.
■ Cartoonist Tom Tomorrow recommends Adams take a cue from, well, guess who.
■ Adams’ indictment came on the same day his predecessor—and Donald Trump thrall—Rudy Giuliani was disbarred in Washington …
■ … setting up Late Night host Seth Meyers to joke, “So Rudy got disbarred. Man, this has got to be the worst thing that happened to a New York City mayor today— What’s that?”
■ The Onion: “Panicked Eric Adams Takes City Hall Employees Hostage.”
‘What if Kamala Harris is leaving Trump in the dust?’ Press Watch columnist Dan Froomkin posits the possibility that “the national media has been too busy doing stenography to notice.”
■ Updating coverage: Harris was off today for her first campaign visit to the U.S.-Mexico border.
■ Washington Post columnist Jennifer Rubin hails Harris’ ability to defy critics: “Members of Harris’s own party have underestimated her abilities to carve policy positions and reconsolidate the Democratic base.”
■ Satirist Alexandra Petri envisions women’s lives if convicted felon Donald Trump wins again: “All your anxieties are gone, now that men are handling all the country’s problems.”
‘Twitter banned me.’ Journalist Ken Klippenstein: “I was banned after publishing the JD Vance Dossier.”
■ The Bulwark: “The most notable thing about the leaked dossier is what was left out.”
‘They’re hardworking, they’re Samaritans, and they’re not the enemy.’ The Sun-Times’ Neil Steinberg turns his column over to what he considers a surprising range of readers who believe immigrants help this country—with stories to prove it.
■ Steinberg himself adds: “Have you been to a hospital? A nursing home? Immigrants carry the weight of the American health care system on their shoulders. My parents’ caregivers are from Ghana.”
In speed cams’ defense. The Conversation: A new study in Chicago concludes that police stop more Black drivers, while speed cameras issue unbiased tickets.
■ Chicago’s top cop, Larry Snelling, reflects on his first year in the job …
■ … during which the Sun-Times concludes he’s “established himself as a steady hand.”
■ He tells WCIU-TV in an extended interview: “We have to be smarter than the bad guys.”
‘A slap in the face.’ A University of Chicago graduate whose diploma was withheld for his involvement in a protest of the Israel-Hamas war sees hypocrisy in the university’s acceptance of a $100 million grant to promote free expression.
■ Philadelphia Inquirer columnist Will Bunch: “60 years after the day college students won free speech, their rights are vanishing.”
Powerless. Ex-Hurricane Helene, now downgraded to a tropical storm, has nevertheless cut off electricity for millions in Georgia and the Carolinas …
■ … with life-threatening floods, too.
‘The biggest reason to force us back to the office is to get a bunch of us to quit.’ Columnist and author Cory Doctorow deplores corporate moves to end remote work.
■ Here’s a list of some of those companies.
LinkedIn’s stealing your words. Without asking users, Microsoft’s professional network has been opting them into training its generative artificial intelligence models.
■ Here’s how to opt out.
■ The Washington Post’s Will Oremus: “Extremists are using artificial intelligence to reanimate Adolf Hitler online for a new generation.”
■ Your Chicago Public Square columnist got a typical 6/8 right.
One of the world’s coolest neighborhoods. Logan Square has made Time Out’s list …
■ … but it’s only 34 out of 38.
■ Little Village neighbors are boycotting a new Starbucks—on grounds it will undercut locally owned businesses.
■ The Pilsen community and the City Council are split on plans for a tax increment district that would freeze for decades property tax revenues going to schools, parks and other government bodies—instead directing that cash to special projects.
Happy birthday, Tonight Show. Tonight marks the 70th anniversary of the debut of NBC’s signature late-night show …
■ … and tomorrow brings the first show of Saturday Night Live’s 50th season.
■ Beginning next month, CNN’s planning to charge for access to its website.
Missing link found. Yesterday’s Square went out without a link to this item:
■ ‘It was light on the two things I demand out of a serious leader: Rambling stories that have nothing to do with the economy and rabid xenophobia.’ USA Today’s Rex Huppke feigns disappointment at Harris’ economic speech in Pittsburgh.
■ ‘It was light on the two things I demand out of a serious leader: Rambling stories that have nothing to do with the economy and rabid xenophobia.’ USA Today’s Rex Huppke feigns disappointment at Harris’ economic speech in Pittsburgh.
■ PayPal works, too.
■ Mike Braden made this edition better.