Judge rules CPS board may have breached Pedro Martinez’s contract

“I will not agree to reduced instructional time for our children,” Martinez said. “We know — parents tell me, would I like more playtime? But if they’re below level in math and reading, what are you gonna do about it?” CHICAGO – Cook County Judge Joel Chupak ruled that Chicago school board members must not meddle in contract negotiations with the Chicago Teachers Union and that their actions have kneecapped Chicago Public Schools CEO Pedro Martinez’s ability to do his job on behalf of students and taxpayers. Martinez says Chicago school board members intimidated CPS staffers on Monday, saying, “We hold all the cards,” when they showed up during CTU contract talks. A judge issued a temporary restraining order against the board, saying the move caused irreparable harm to Martinez and his ability to bargain on behalf of CPS. “The winner today is the kids who hopefully will have a better agreement and school system because the law will be honored and the CEO will be able to negotiate the agreement without interference,” Martinez’s attorney, William Quinlan, said after the court hearing. FOX 32 ran into three board members outside of CTU headquarters on Monday. They said they were there to support CPS. Martinez says they hindered the process, choosing instead to caucus with CTU members and pressure CPS staffers to hurry up and come to an agreement. Read More Here At Fox 32

Editorial: Mr. Mayor, if you truly care about Chicago, you should step aside.

Mr. Mayor, When it comes to dirty politics, Chicago wrote the book. Anyone old enough to remember awful chapters of our collective history — the shameful Council Wars period of the 1980s, the abuses brought to light by the notorious Operation Silver Shovel investigation of the 1990s, or the details that recently have emerged from the trials of former Ald. Ed Burke and former House Speaker and ward boss Mike Madigan — should perhaps guard against sounding too shocked by news that a Chicago elected official has stooped to a new low.  But there’s little reason to doubt what happened tonight — the firing of Chicago Public Schools CEO Pedro Martinez — will go down in Chicago history as another example of rotten government at work. Ald. Nicholas Sposato put it succinctly in his remarks during tonight’s special meeting of the Chicago Board of Education, calling your hand-picked school board members “a bunch of political hacks that are stepping in to do some dirty work.” Those who attended the meeting expressed frustration with a range of issues and challenges facing the CPS system — and that system includes the teachers and staffers who work there every day, the neighborhoods that rely on the schools as anchors of their communities, the parents who want the best possible education for their children, and the children themselves. What’s more than unfortunate is that the actions your board took tonight — and the actions they can now be relied upon to take next —…

WATCH: Woman Calls Chicago Mayor a N****

Chicago resident Vashon Tuncle highlights how the migrant crisis is impacting the Windy City and exchanges remarks with incoming ‘border czar’ Tom Homan! Chicago resident says city ‘needs’ Tom Homan: ‘This place sucks right now!’ This woman called on Tom Homan to “make an example” out of “this ne***,” Mayor Brandon Johnson. These city council meetings are not a lot of for him, are they? Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson’s proposed budget passed the City Council on Monday, but only by an extremely narrow margin. The final vote came in at 27-23 in favor of the proposal, capping off months of vigorous debate, fierce criticism and a series of proposals that finally yielded results just two weeks before the end of the year. Johnson’s original budget proposal called for a property tax hike of approximately $300 million, but that eventually was removed from the budget entirely as part of the negotiations to arrive at a solution. The newest budget included spending reductions and adjustments to city staffing, while also including a $40 million short-term loan that was blasted by the mayor’s critics, who had called for more decisive action to prevent future issues with the proposal. According to the budget, the city will trim 10 positions from Johnson’s office, and will reduce staffing in middle management roles. Other moves to “improve efficiency” in security and energy spending were also included in the proposal. The budget also included plans to add millions in additional revenues via upping taxes on personal property leases,…

Chicago mayor boots public from rowdy city meeting as residents object to migrant ‘invasion’

While Johnson’s 2025 budget narrowly passed on Monday, it was only after the mayor ordered a temporary recess to allow police to clear residents from the hall to allow council members to vote. It took six weeks of debate for Johnson to secure the 26 votes necessary to pass the budget plan, with the opposition succeeding in removing a proposed $300 million property tax. The plan also adopts a $40 million short-term loan that allows the city to delay paying off its debt, a major point of criticism for many of the protesters. “You caused all this money to go to illegal immigrants,” one resident told Johnson during the public comment period. “Anything that you all pass is not genuine.” Another resident accused Johnson of failing to “protect the people of Chicago from invasion.” “He wants to pull a $40 million line of credit and put the city in even more debt,” another resident said. “It’s your fault, because you gave half of the money to illegals.” STUART VARNEY: THE ‘SANCTUARY MOVEMENT’ IS ON ITS LAST LEGS Johnson also faced criticism over hiring too many staffers and paying them too much. Chicago reporter William Kelly told Fox News that Johnson has enlisted more than 100 staffers and each of them has a six-figure salary. He also argued many of the positions appear frivolous. Read More At FOX News! Watch the latest video at foxnews.com

Mayor Brandon Johnson abandoning $68.5 million property tax hike in latest bid for budget deal!

Mayor Brandon Johnson on Sunday was briefing members of the Chicago City Council on his latest ideas to get his 2025 budget approved by year’s end. Local News Mayor Brandon Johnson abandoning $68.5 million property tax hike in latest bid for budget deal By Chris Tye, Todd Feurer Updated on: December 15, 2024 / 11:19 PM CST / CBS Chicago CHICAGO (CBS) — Seeking to get a budget deal done on Monday, Mayor Brandon Johnson has dropped plans to seek a $68.5 million property tax hike, sources have told CBS News Chicago, though it remains unclear if his latest proposal will win him enough votes from the City Council. The move comes as the mayor and aldermen have been spending the weekend working to negotiate a possible deal to end the budget impasse in time for a vote on Monday afternoon. The mayor’s team was holding briefings with alders on Sunday to discuss his latest plan. Sources said one new element of the effort to pass a budget deal on Monday includes the city cracking down on major sports teams and other venues in Chicago to reimburse the city for police overtime costs for special events. That would bring in an estimated $10 million for the city. The city spent $22.6 million on police overtime for special events this year but has only been reimbursed $2 million, leaving taxpayers to cover the remaining costs. City law requires special event producers to pay for police services beyond 12 shifts. However, an investigation by Block Club Chicago and CBS Chicago revealed…

Facing certain defeat, Mayor Brandon Johnson postpones Chicago city budget vote!

By Sabrina Franza, Todd Feurer CHICAGO (CBS) — Mayor Brandon Johnson called off Friday’s 2025 city budget vote, after his revised spending plan relying on a property tax hike and other increased fines and fees without significant spending cuts faced certain defeat. After the meeting, Johnson acknowledged he does not yet have the votes to pass his $17.3 billion spending plan. It was another chaotic day at City Hall as shouts erupted in the City Council chamber when the meeting was brought to an end after about 20 minutes, and recessed until Monday afternoon, before any action was taken on either the budget or other routine legislative items on the agenda. At least one person in the City Council gallery was handcuffed and escorted out as they shouted over the Council’s vote to end the meeting and return on Monday. The Johnson administration and City Council have until Dec. 31 to get a budget deal done, or face an unprecedented city government shutdown. Despite spending weeks tweaking his original budget plan, the mayor has yet to get the votes he needs to pass it. He would need either 26 votes, or could cast a tie-breaking vote to approve his budget if he can get the support of 25 alders. “The reality is, we’re very close, but we’re still not there yet,” Johnson said after Friday’s council meeting. Read More Here!

Mayor Brandon Johnson’s Spending Plan That Hikes Taxes by $234M Set for Final Vote

So remember all of the taxes Mayor Johnson is proposing is on top of:1) Illinois/Pritzker’s budget office projects $3.2B deficit, 2) Chicago Public Schools faces $500M deficit despite $10B budget and CPS already faced a $391 million shortfall as federal COVID-19 funding was set to expire, but the district said additional “cost pressures” in healthcare and special education resources added more than $100 million to the deficit — bringing the final total to $505 million. Read More Here! And Plus, that $505 million deficit is before factoring in whatever the Chicago Teachers Union gets out of over $10 billion in new contract demands. 3) Chicago’s Budget Deficit Balloons to Nearly $1 Billion in 2025! 4) And the Cook County Budget has shortfall! Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle today unveiled the preliminary forecast for the County’s Fiscal Year 2025, showing a projected gap of $218.2 million – significantly reduced from the $409.6 million peak during the pandemic. Read More Here! Do you see what I see? I foresee the state, county, city and CPS trying to raise taxes with the tax levy again and we just had the CPS tax levy when Lightfoot was in office! Mayor Brandon Johnson’s third proposal to raise property taxes in order to avoid draconian cuts to city services and thousands of layoffs may prove to be the charm. Two key Chicago City Council committees voted Tuesday to send Johnson’s $17.3 billion spending plan for 2025 to the full City Council for a final vote. The two-step process…

Chicago removes largest homeless encampment, relocates tent residents into apartments and shelters: report

Chicago officials reportedly cleared the largest homeless encampment in the city after relocating some residents into apartments and shelter beds. According to the Chicago Sun Times, the encampments in Humboldt Park, amounting to “roughly 90” per city data, were removed after nearby homeowners shared safety and health concerns and demanded action from city officials.  “Other neighbors have focused on providing food and necessities to the tent occupants,” the Times reported. The effort has been a priority for Ald. Jessie Fuentes of the 26th Ward. He explained further to the Times that “the city had moved 39 residents into apartments and was working on apartments for 24 others.” CHICAGO ALDERMAN SOUNDS ALARM ON MIGRANT SURGE AHEAD OF DNC: ‘WE CAN’T HANDLE ANY MORE’ “The encampment was more than three times bigger than the next largest Chicago tent city, according to a city count obtained by the Sun-Times through a request under Illinois’ open-records law,” the outlet reported. Read More Here!

Chicago mayor’s likely final budget proposal includes property tax hike, eliminates income program

CHICAGO (WLS) — Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson’s budget team is presenting what looks to be its best and final offer to City Council members in a series of meetings that began Friday. It will include a property tax hike, but no layoffs. However some programs are being eliminated. Supporters of one program to help the most vulnerable said they are not going down without a fight. ABC7 Chicago is now streaming 24/7. Click here to watch Supporters of the guaranteed basic income program that provided qualifying households with $500 per month for a year are frustrated that it is being eliminated from the upcoming budget. Read More Here!

WOKE Chicago Mayor Tells Residents to F**k Off… City Council REJECTS Him and Trump Fires Back!

WOKE Chicago Mayor Tells Residents to F**k Off… City Council REJECTS Him and Trump Fires Back! “Chaos erupts in Chicago as woke Mayor Brandon Johnson faces a crushing political defeat of epic proportions. In an unprecedented move, the city council voted 50-to-0—yes, almost unanimously—to reject his proposed $300 million property tax hike. This shocking rebuke has left Johnson scrambling for answers and pointing fingers, even dragging former President Donald Trump into the conversation in a desperate attempt to shift blame. Read More Here!