First they said they would, then he said they won’t. Hours after Immigration and Customs Enforcement—shaken by more deaths in its crackdown fiasco—directed its officers to suspend vehicle stops, President Trump took to his social media account to insist that “we CANNOT give up one of ICE’s most important and effective Crime Fighting tools, THE TRAFFIC STOP!”
■ Bill Kristol at The Bulwark sees no reason to expect “any kind of fundamental change to this thuggish and lawless agency.”
■ The City Council’s set to review Chicago’s efforts to curtail ICE agents’ abuses. (Cartoon: Jack Ohman.)
■ Borderless: With Trump administration immigration policies shifting almost daily, lawyers fighting back say they’re spending more time tracking policy than preparing cases—and running on empty.
‘In less than 18 months at the Department of Justice, you’ve shown you’re still President Trump’s personal attorney.’ Those were Illinois Sen. Dick Durbin’s opening remarks for two days of hearings on Trump’s attorney general pick, his sycophantic former personal lawyer Todd Blanche …
■ … even as Blanche’s law license is now at risk.
■ Popular Information’s No. 1 question for Blanche: What is he still hiding about Jeffrey Epstein?
■ Today’s hearing was underway at Chicago Public Square’s email deadline. You can see it—live, or later—here. (Cartoon: Jack Ohman, on fire.)
■ NewsGuard reports tracking its 380th false claim about U.S. elections.
■ Trump’s finally paid his sexual abuse victim E. Jean Carroll $5.6 million.
‘I always thought Lindsey Graham was Lindsey Graham’s sister.’ Jimmy Kimmel substitute host and Chicago native Ike Barinholtz is confused by the swearing-in of Darlene Graham as successor to her brother, the late senator.
■ Washington Post analysis (gift link) seems to confirm that a photo of Sen. Mitch McConnell in the hospital was real—or at least that the newspaper shown in that photo was indeed Sunday’s Post.
‘The headlines should have been: Trump makes crackpot Iran announcement.’ Press Watch columnist Dan Froomkin’s disappointed by news coverage of the president’s latest turn in the war.
‘That’s it! If JB didn’t lead a pure, wholesome life in high school then I am DONE with him!’ Columnist Eric Zorn mocks Illinois Republican gubernatorial candidate Darren Bailey’s trolling of Gov. Pritzker with a caption under Pritzker’s high school yearbook photo.
■ The Wall Street Journal reports that Illinois’ expat billionaire Ken Griffin, who’s glommed his name onto Chicago’s iconic Museum of Science and Industry, has poured $40 million into Republicans’ midterm campaign coffers (gift link).
■ WBEZ’s Curious City reminds you that the museum’s founder didn’t want his name on the place.
Ballot blows. Chalkbeat: Five candidates for Chicago’s forthcoming fully elected school board have been bounced.
■ The Chicago Teachers Union is backing 15 candidates.
■ Anthropic is launching a classroom version of its AI assistant Claude.
216. That was the latest count yesterday for Illinois’ confirmed cases of the explosive-diarrhea ailment cyclosporiasis.
■ Michigan lettuce is one suspect.
■ Your Local Epidemiologist tackles 10 cyclosporiasis questions—beginning with “Can you just tell me what not to eat?”
■ The Tribune (gift link) rounds up what to know about eating at home and dining out during this outbreak.
■ Snopes confirms: Trump’s administration cut surveillance of cyclospora a year ago.
■ Columnist Jeff Tiedrich: “It may have been a mistake to put our nation’s healthcare in the hands of Mister Excuse Me While I Snort This Heroin Off This Toilet Seat And Oh By The Way, I Have No Idea How Germs Work.”
■ The Onion, in a Chicago-datelined post: “Guy Violently Coughing On Bus Better Just Have Throat Cancer.”
Country Thunder crimes. A Sun-Times investigation tracks a series of sexual assaults on young women at the country music festival that returns this weekend to the Illinois-Wisconsin border.
■ Rage Against the Machine founder Tom Morello’s mom is dead at 102.
Help’s here. Chicago-area residents who suffered losses in the storms of June 10, 11 and 17 now can apply for low-interest loans to set things right.
■ You can apply online here.
■ Chicago’s air quality this week sucks—and may get even worse.
‘Ditch the switch.’ The House has sent the Senate a bill that would make daylight saving time permanent, year-round, in the United States.
■ Columnist Neil Steinberg: Even in Chicago’s light-polluted suburbs—with the right tech—you can see the nighttime wonders of the cosmos.
‘Square is my first news source of every weekday. Keep up the good work. We certainly need it.’ Those generous words of support came yesterday from a reader whose contribution underwrites Square’s production and distribution—part of a cohort that also includes PEGGI MEYER, Jean Davidson Meister (again!), Mary Godlewski (again!), Maria Garvy (again!), Liz Fitzgerald, Tom Williamson, Lloyd Sachs, Annemarie Kill, Tom O’Malley, Meghan Strubel, Beth Marcou, Dave Kraft, Martin Yeager, Geraldine Delaney, Norm Hirsch, Paul Noble, Marianne Goss, Sara Burrows, Jill Anderson, Jay Kelly, Neal Kleemann, Larry Baldacci, Kevin Wallace, Linda Paul, Kathy O’Brien, Robert Feder, Steve Nidetz, Julie Vassilatos, Melanie Carter, Bill Paige, Joyce Winnecke, Zarine Weil, Bennett Hart, Ed Hansen, Cindy Homan, Susan Franer, Cate Cahan, Larry Dahlke, Suzy Le Clair, Craig Brown, Gil Arias, Sandra Black, Mary Bunker, Mollie Kramer, David Mendell, LJ in Arkansas, Sharon Kurth, Allan Hippensteel, Ronald A. Fox, Terry Locke, Kent Bridgeman, Tom Wethekam, Steve Adler, Michael Boyd and Mike Krauser.
■ Special offer: Pledge any continuing amount today and see your name here tomorrow—in the color of your choice! (You’ll get a follow-up email asking your preference.)
■ Mike Braden made this edition better.
A Square public service announcement in honor of an old friend
