And we’re back—with the 1,999th regular edition of Chicago Public Square. Check in for fun as we reach No. 2,000 tomorrow. But now, the news:
R.I.P., Jesse Jackson. A man WBEZ’s Natalie Moore calls “perhaps the nation’s most recognizable civil rights icon” is dead at 84.
■ Sun-Times columnist Neil Steinberg: Jackson was “an unceasing voice for social justice.”
■ Axios surveys his impact on Chicago.
■ He sent two sons to Congress—with mixed results.
■ He ran twice for president—doing better than any Black politician until Barack Obama.
■ Later in that same show, he read Dr. Seuss’ Green Eggs and Ham.
■ An AP photo collection illustrates Jackson’s life.
Hi, GM, State Farm, JPMorgan Chase, Delta and Microsoft. Popular Information calls out major corporations bankrolling a Senate candidate’s ad featuring a white supremacist slogan.
■ USA Today’s Chicago-based columnist Rex Huppke: “Wow, Elon Musk sure does like White people.”
■ A federal judge is ordering the Trump administration to restore a Philadelphia exhibit on George Washington’s slaves.
■ Law prof Joyce Vance sounds an alarm about “Trump’s appeal to ‘nationalize’ elections. He wants to take control.”
Outta there. Lewis University is canceling or going virtual with all classes at its Oak Brook location this week after learning that ICE is setting up in the same building where Lewis has been leasing space.
■ Huppke again: “Turns out not every community in America wants a patriotic detention facility, which is weird, because, seriously, they’re really cool and not at all the physical manifestation of a barbaric federal effort to fundamentally reshape the demographic makeup of America into something less ... ummmmmm … let’s say ‘diverse.’”
■ A former Homeland Security watchdog warns that the partial government shutdown could hinder investigations of ICE wrongdoing.
‘A pretty big deal in the Chicago area.’ An Ash Wednesday Mass and procession set for Melrose Park—designed by Catholic leaders to “lift up immigrants’ resilience”—took the spotlight at the start of Rachel Maddow’s show on MS NOW.
■ But first: Fat Tuesday—or, as Chicagoans know it, to their palates’ delight: Pączki Day.
Surprise. A Republican candidate for Illinois governor is reprimanding the national party’s mockery of Democratic Gov. Pritzker’s weight.
■ Pritzker’s cousin Tom Pritzker is stepping down as chairman of Hyatt Hotels after revelation of his ties to convicted and dead sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
■ Ready to cast your Illinois primary ballot? Check the Square Voter Guide Guide.
Colbert to FCC boss: ‘FCC-U.’ After his CBS bosses killed an interview with a Democrat running for the U.S. Senate in Texas, Stephen Colbert last night went into great detail: “I was told … that not only could I not have him on, I could not mention me not having him on. And because my network clearly doesn’t want us to talk about this … let’s talk about this” …
■ … proceeding to blame “Baby” Donald Trump and his sycophantic Federal Communications Commission chief …
■ … and then posting the interview to YouTube anyway.
■ Columnist Jeff Tiedrich: “Colbert loves nothing more than dicking with his corporate overlords, and all of us are so here for it.”
■ Poynter’s Tom Jones: “Anderson Cooper’s exit raises new questions about the future of 60 Minutes.”
■ Journalism watchdog Margaret Sullivan: “CBS News twisted its own reporting on ICE arrests.”
‘Nothing. Zero.’ A former EPA vehicle emissions regulator tells The New York Times (gift link) the Trump administration’s decision to abandon the government’s fight against climate change has in effect ended all regulation of car and truck pollution.
■ Chicago’s warmest Feb. 16 on record yesterday brought a business boom to area carwashes.
■ Meanwhile, Californians were grappling with what the AP calls “treacherous thunderstorms, high winds and heavy snow in mountain areas.”
‘Just the latest grift in a presidential term that experts so far estimate has enriched the Trump family by at least $4 billion.’ Historian Heather Cox Richardson turns a skeptical eye on the president’s move to trademark his name for future use on an airport.
■ Columnist Matt Yglesias on “Trump’s terrible plan to revive coal: It’s dirty, it’s not cheap, it’s not a good idea.”
■ Snopes has felt compelled to refute a piece of satire that sadly carried the ring of truth: “Trump Administration Announces That We Don’t Know Where the Sun Goes at Night.”
Do it for Chicago journalists—or do it for the chance at a $100 gift card. Take a few minutes for a survey to help news organizations working with Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism better understand the public they serve—and show advertisers and other potential funders that the region’s journalists have substantial community backing.
‘I find myself … in a Reader state of mind.’ The Tribune’s Rick Kogan celebrates a book revisiting the paper’s first half-century …
■ … with a foreword by MS NOW’s Chris Hayes—who once upon a time was a Reader contributor.
How safe is your home? Kim Komando’s The Current newsletter: “Anyone can find your home address on a free people search site in seconds. Then Zillow hands them a blueprint of every room, entry point and camera angle.”
■ Here’s how to remove some of that from the web.