Tag: CHICAGO

(MORE FROM CHICAGO) – Coronavirus downtown: COVID-19 case at Prudential Plaza; nearby buildings alert tenants, employees

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By Ryan Ori – 3/11/2020

A worker in one of Chicago’s largest office complexes has tested positive for the new coronavirus, causing companies there and in nearby buildings to take measures to prevent the illness from spreading.

Tenants in Prudential Plaza and other buildings near Millennium Park have been told an employee at an unidentified company in the two-tower Prudential complex on Tuesday tested positive for COVID-19. Since being diagnosed, the worker has not returned to the property, according to building owner Sterling Bay.

The illness, the first confirmed case involving a large Chicago office property, adds to the challenge of containing an outbreak in Chicago, where some schools have closed and major gatherings such as upcoming St. Patrick’s Day parades have been called off.

Employers are responding with a range of preventive measures, including at least one company that is asking anyone who has been in Prudential Plaza recently to consider working from home for the next two weeks.

“We understand the Prudential building is a common lunch spot for employees working in the area, so please be aware of the situation and avoid the building until it is cleared,” employees of Crain Communications were told in an email Wednesday.

The company, whose publications include Crain’s Chicago Business, has its offices in the office tower at 150 N. Michigan Ave., just across Michigan Avenue from Prudential Plaza.

“If you were in the Prudential building recently, please be aware of your own personal health and speak with your manager about working from home for the next 14 days until the incubation period has expired,” the Crain Communications email said. “If you do not show symptoms during that 14-day period we’ll be happy to have you back in the office.”

Other employers are taking steps such as allowing or encouraging people to work from home.

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A confirmed illness at Prudential Plaza is particularly troubling because of the property’s sheer size, at 2.3 million square feet, and its connection to other buildings via the Pedway. The underground walkway is used by thousands of office tenants connect to commuter trains, nearby lunch spots and other businesses.

The complex is along the north edge of Chicago’s biggest tourist destination, Millennium Park, meaning there is typically heavy foot traffic in the area.

 

“We take this situation extremely seriously,” Sterling Bay spokeswoman Julie Goudie said in an emailed statement. “As soon as we learned of the diagnosis, we immediately notified building tenants and advised anyone who feels ill to stay home and contact a health professional if they experience symptoms of COVID-19.

 

“We have been and will continue to aggressively clean One Two Pru in accordance with CDC and WHO protocol. The health and safety of our tenant community is our highest priority and we encourage all tenants to continue practicing good personal hygiene as we navigate this moment together.”

 

The Chicago Tribune is based in One Prudential Plaza, and employees are being given the option of working from home. In an email to employees Wednesday, Editor-in-Chief Colin McMahon told employees the newspaper “asked Prudential services to increase their cleaning regimen in and around our offices, and they have complied. We will continue to work closely with the building on precautions and next steps.”

 

[The latest] Coronavirus in Illinois updates: Here’s what’s happening Wednesday with COVID-19 in the Chicago area

Goudie said Sterling Bay’s increased cleaning efforts included “the additional measure of an electrostatic sprayer application of a virus-killing cleaning product on common area touchpoints.”

 

Tenants in the neighboring Aon Center, Chicago’s third-tallest skyscraper, were told the ill Prudential employee does not use the shuttle buses that run between those buildings and commuter train stations on the western edge of the Loop.

 

“For the past two weeks, the Aon/Prudential shuttle implemented additional disinfectant measures on each shuttle,” said the email sent to Aon Center tenants.

Shuttle buses continue to operate on schedule, according to the email.

 

In an email, BOMA/Chicago, an association of 240 Chicago buildings, said it was providing its members with updates and guidelines and defers “to our best-in-class building owners and managers to implement the proper cleaning protocols and procedures to help ensure the continued safety of their building tenants.”

 

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Dr. Fauci Warns “Worst Is Yet To Come”: Coronavirus Is “10x More Lethal Than The Flu,” Could Infect “Millions” Of Americans

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Profile picture for user Tyler Durden
by Tyler Durden
Wed, 03/11/2020 – 11:16

Summary:

  • First death in Indonesia

  • Washington State to ban events over 200

  • ‘Waffle House’ employee in Atlanta confirmed

  • Chicago cancels St. Paddy’s Day parade

  • NY sends in National Guard

  • IADB cancels meeting in Colombia as virus spreads across Latin America

  • Mnuchin says first part of virus stimulus plan will be ready in 2 days

  • Dr. Fauci warns virus 10x more deadly than flu and could infect millions if not handled early

  • FEMA evacuates Atlanta office over coronavirus scare

  • 3 Boeing workers test positie

  • Washington DC advises cancellation or postponement of all gatherings with more than 1,000 people

  • Harvard to prorate room and board for students

  • US cases surpass 1,000

  • UK Health Minister catches virus

  • Ireland, Bulgaria, Sweden report first deaths

  • UK total hits 456 following largest daily jump on record (83 new cases)

  • Global cases pass 120,000

  • South Korea reports new outbreak in call center

  • Japan reportedly planning to declare state of emergency

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Update (1220ET): Three Boeing workers have tested positive for the virus, the company said. Though Boeing offered few details, we suspect the employees are probably based in Washington State, where Boeing builds its planes.

In Washington DC, authorities are recommending the cancellation or postponement of all “non-essential” gatherings over 1,000.

As students leave campuses around the country either heading back home or hunkering down finish their classes on line, Harvard just announced that it would “pro-rate” students’ room and board.

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Update (1220ET): With the committee in charge of the Tokyo Olympic Games reportedly planning to suggest that the games be delayed, more images of the coronavirus fears’ impact on international travel are circulating online. Check out this.

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Update (1200ET): The CDC has released its latest batch of “confirmed” US figures: 29 deaths, 987 cases and cases confirmed in 39 states as of 10 pm last night.

  • U.S. CDC – 39 STATES HAVE REPORTED CASES AS OF MARCH 10 AT 4 PM ET VS PREVIOUS REPORT OF 36 STATES

  • U.S. CDC – 29 TOTAL DEATHS DUE TO NEW CORONAVIRUS AS OF MARCH 10 AT 4 PM ET VS 25 DEATHS AS OF PREVIOUS REPORT

  • U.S. CDC REPORTS ITS COUNT OF 987 CASES OF NEW CORONAVIRUS AS OF MARCH 10 AT 4 PM ET, VS PREVIOUS REPORT OF 696 CASES

Around the world, the virus has produced many “isn’t it ironic?” moments, and we just got another in the US when FEMA announced that it would close its Atlanta office after an employee was exposed to the virus.

  • FEMA ATLANTA OFFICE CLOSED AFTER EMPLOYEE EXPOSED TO VIRUS

Over in the UK, a total of 456 people have tested positive for coronavirus in the UK as of 9am on Wednesday, up from 373 at the same point on Tuesday, the Department of Health said. The jump of 83 new cases is the largest daily jump yet, following the previous ‘largest daily increase’ by only a few days.

Six have died in the UK and tested positive for the virus. Over in Ireland, authorities reported their first death on Wednesday. A 66-year-old Bulgarian woman also succumbed to the virus in the Balkan state, marking the first death there as well.

After the UK Health Minister Nadine Dorries tested positive for the virus, and started showing symptoms on Thursday, the same day she attended an event with the prime minister. Though the UK has elected to keep parliament open, Dorries and a Labour lawmaker who may have been exposed via a meeting with Dorries have decided to self-quarantine.

UK Chief Medical Officer Catherine Calderwood stressed that “we are still in the containment phase” despite an increased number of Covid-19 cases.

She said: “We have identified the first case of community transmission in Scotland which is unrelated to contact or travel. This was identified through our enhanced surveillance scheme.

Sweden has reported its first death from the coronavirus today, with a hospital in Stockholm saying an elderly patient had died in intensive care. Belgium has reported its first three deaths, with 314 cases of coronavirus. Ivory Coast has confirmed its first case of coronavirus, a 45-year-old Ivorian man who had recently travelled to Italy, the health ministry said in a statement. Denmark confirmed a batch of new cases, raising its total to 442.

While Washington State is apparently planning to ban all events with over 250 people, Washington DC has advised citizens to avoid such gatherings.

While

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Update (1150ET): Rencap’s Charlie Robertson points out that it took 5 days since the first indication of human-to-human transmission happening at a wide scale in the US, and if our numbers track Germany’s, we should have 3,000 cases confirmed by Friday, and 6,000 by Monday.

Though that rate could double if many new clusters are discovered.

CAP

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Update (1100ET): With another day of non-stop breaking news headlines about the outbreak as it spreads across the US, Europe and Latin America, we’ve been having troubled keeping up.

Switzerland reported 148 new cases of coronavirus on Wednesday, with 645 cases in total, 58 cases in Zürich and 78 cases in Geneva.

Indonesia, an Asian nation that didn’t report its first case until more than a month after the global outbreak began reported its first death linked to the virus on Wednesday as well.

National Guard troops have been deployed to a Health Department command post in New Rochelle. Chicago has followed San Francisco and cancelled its St. Patrick’s Day Parade. In NYC, schools will not close, but parent-teacher conferences will be held via phone.

An employee at a ‘Waffle House’ in Metro Atlanta (Cherokee County) has tested positive for the virus, raising fears about a mass outbreak in Georgia. The store has been closed and 12 employees are quarantining and will continue for a few more days.

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The Inter-American Development Bank postponed its annual meeting in Colombia, which had been scheduled for next week, over coronavirus fears as the virus spreads across Latin America. The Washington-based bank, the top development institution dedicated to Latin America and the Caribbean, announced the decision with Colombian President Ivan Duque on Tuesday evening.

With transports and financials leading equities lower on Wednesday, Treasury Secretary Mnuchin, who testified to Congress on Wednesday tried to offer some reassuring details about the White House plan, which remains very much in the ‘brainstorm’ phase. Still, Mnuchin insisted that Trump is standing by the payroll tax holiday to put more money in the hands of workers. The Treasury is also hoping to delay tax payments and leave $200 billion of “temporary liquidity” in the hands of Americans.

Mnuchin said the White House hopes to strike a deal on the first part of the virus stimulus plan within the next 48 hours. His testimony follows rumors about the administration offering a potential ‘bailout’ to the American shale energy industry. Other stimulus actions will take “a week or two” he added.

Importantly, the Treasury Secretary also insisted that no market interventions are being planned (so no PPT?).

In remarks on Tuesday, CDC Director Robert Redfield said that America had lost valuable time tracking the virus; some regions now can merely try to cope with its spread rather than stop it. And during testimony on Wednesday, Dr. Fauci said that when it comes to the outbreak in the US, “the worst is yet to come” because the virus is “10x more lethal than the seasonal flu”.

If the US doesn’t handle the virus outbreak correctly, “many, many millions of people” will get the virus, he said.

The global coronavirus outbreak has hit a new milestone: It surpassed 120,000 cases overnight. For anybody who’s still bothering to keep track, that’s 15x the number of cases from the SARS outbreak, which continued for nearly a year before it finally petered out.

In the US, the coronavirus outbreak has reached a grim new milestone. Thanks to the administration’s scramble to bring dozens of private and public labs on-line for testing across the country, the CDC has managed to confirm more than 1,000 cases of the virus. In the Westchester County town of New Rochelle, the epicenter of the outbreak in New York State, and the largest on the east coast, woke up to a 1-mile exclusion zone and national guard soldiers in the streets.

The town now looks like a “ghost town” according to several reports.

As the number of cases topped 1,000, the number of deaths has also climbed: Officially, there are 31 deaths and 1,039 confirmed cases, according to the Washington Post, which is significantly more than the number confirmed by Dr. Anthony Fauci during last night’s press conference.

Across the US, Washington State’s King County remains the epicenter of America’s worst outbreak, with 273 cases . New York is No. 2 with 176 (13 additional cases have just been announced). After hinting about ‘mandatory measures’ last night that set tongues wagging about the possibility of Italy-style travel restrictions, Washington Gov. Jay Inslee is reportedly planning to announce a plan to…ban all events with more than 250 people, according to MyNorthwest.

At a press conference scheduled for Wednesday at 10:15 a.m., it is expected that Gov. Jay Inslee along with regional leaders and city mayors could announce a ban on large gatherings and events of 250 people or more in at least three counties. Any ban would affect upcoming sporting events in the area, including a home game for the XFL’s Seattle Dragons on Sunday.

Inslee has been hinting at this for the past week as a possible preemptive move to curb the spread of coronavirus. Over the weekend, he stated that his office was considering enacting “mandatory measures” in the days ahead.

Monday night on MSBNC, the Washington governor spoke to Rachel Maddow, admitting that soon, the state was “going to have to make some hard decisions.”

He further elaborated on that point during a Tuesday press conference, when he cited the need to “look forward ahead of the curve in Washington state.”

“We need to look at what is coming, not just what is here today,” he detailed, estimating that given limits on testing capacity, experts have told him there could be at least 1,000 untested coronavirus cases across the state.

So much for ‘hard decisions’….

This immense build up, only to announce restrictions that are only ‘slightly’ more comprehensive than the milquetoast event bans embraced by Germany, France, Switzerland and others, brings to mind a tweet we noticed earlier highlighting the sometimes unintended consequences that half-measures can create.

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On the east coast, the State of New York is asking businesses to voluntarily consider having employees work two shifts as well as allowing telework, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said in an interview with CNN, the network that employs his brother, where he has been making near-daily appearances in addition to his daily press conferences.

Gov. Inslee

“This is about reducing the density,” Cuomo said. “The spread is not going to stop on its own.”

He also announced 20 new cases of virus, bringing total in state to about 193, with most of the new cases diagnosed in New Rochelle, where the virus has clearly been circulating for weeks.

There have been reports that Democrats are pushing for a national emergency declaration which would trigger  tens of billions of dollars in funding from FEMA to help with the containment effort, and possibly to help grappled with the economic fallout from the outbreak.

Despite a few notable screwups lately (including a collapsed ad hoc quarantine that left roughly one dozen dead and many trapped in the rubble for days, Beijing continues to insist that it is winning the war against the virus, and while the true scope of China’s outbreak might never be known for sure (some have estimated 1 million cases throughout China), officials did report a slight rise in cases on Wednesday which they blamed on ‘imports from abroad.’

Officials reported 24 additional cases of coronavirus and 22 additional deaths on March 10, compared with 19 additional cases and 17 additional deaths on March 9, bringing the total number of cases in mainland China to 80,778 and death toll at 3,158. China’s Hubei province said it will mandate a return to work according to different levels of risk in an orderly manner, adding that key areas of the Wuhan economy will be allowed to return.

After 11 days of falling case numbers, South Korea reported 242 additional coronavirus cases early Wednesday, bringing its total to 7,555, and 6 additional deaths, increasing the death toll to 60, reversing a streak of declines that had convinced many that Korea’s outbreak had ended.

The South has made remarkable progress in fighting the outbreak, however, a new mass infection incident has popped up that is jeopardizing the government’s widely praised response. Earlier, South Korean authorities told Reuters that they had tested hundreds of staff at a Seoul call center where the disease broke out this week. 13 of the infected workers at the Seoul call center used public transportation to commute, leading to at least 90 other people who had close contact with them being infected. Of the 90 cases mentioned earlier, 62 were in Seoul, and all were located near a public transportation hub connecting Seoul with Incheon and other major cities, via which the virus spread.

The spread has even made it into the armed forces, raising new fears about an outbreak in tightly packed barracks

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Elsewhere, Japan is reportedly planning to declare a state of emergency due to the coronavirus outbreak after the number of domestic cases rose by the largest daily number yet, with 59 new cases bringing the total to 1,278, while the total death toll has climbed to 19 and there were 427 discharged from hospital on Tuesday.

Italy’s total coronavirus cases rose to 10,149, from 9172, and the death toll increased to 631 yesterday from 463 in its largest daily jump yet.

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Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot cancels St. Patrick’s Day parades because of coronavirus, says they’ll be rescheduled

CAP

By John Byrne – 3/11/2020

The coronavirus claimed its first major events in Chicago’s civic life Wednesday, as Mayor Lori Lightfoot canceled the city’s massive St. Patrick’s Day parades for this weekend because of fears the disease would spread through the dense crowds.

The mayor made her decision after days of speculation as other cities from Boston to Dublin dropped their festivities for the holiday. Lightfoot called off Saturday’s downtown parade and Sunday’s South Side Irish parade just days before they were set to step off. She also canceled a smaller Northwest Side parade.

“This was not an easy decision and we don’t take it lightly,” Lightfoot said at a morning news conference with Gov. J.B. Pritzker and other officials announcing the decision.

The mayor’s last minute move to shut down the parades reflects the difficulty of the call. The St. Patrick’s Day revelry — which features the famous dyeing of the Chicago River green on the morning of the downtown parade — is a huge boon to Chicago hotels, restaurants and bars as people stream into the city from throughout the Midwest.

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Lightfoot said officials would work to reschedule the parades at a later date.

The local tourism industry is already reeling from the recent cancellations of several big trade shows at McCormick Place, and the St. Patrick’s Day events draw tens of thousands of spectators.

 

But in the end, Lightfoot had to know she would be judged more harshly if Chicago got hit especially hard by the COVID-19 virus and the outbreak was traced back to the decision to go ahead with the parades. Health officials have been warning for weeks that the best way to avoid contracting the respiratory ailment is to avoid close contact with people who are infected.

 

“Like cities across the nation, we concluded that having a parade at this time posed an unnecessary risk to the public’s health,” she said.

Downtown Ald. Brendan Reilly, 42nd, noted how hard it was to scrap the events.

[The latest] Running list of Chicago-area closings and cancellations because of coronavirus 

“It was a very difficult call for the Mayor,” Reilly said Wednesday. “Nobody is more sensitive to the concerns of the downtown business community than I am, so this is very disappointing. But, as the son of a public health doctor who ran County Hospital, I can say this is 100% the right call.”

 

Pritzker said he supported the decision as officials were trying to minimize the rampant spread of COVID-19.

 

“This is not a decision that she took lightly, and we all know what the St. Patrick’s Day celebrations mean to the city of Chicago,” Pritzker said. “Because of what we’ve seen nationally, and across the world, of the increased risk of large gatherings, this was the right call.”

 

With the mayor out of town on vacation, Pritzker on Tuesday questioned whether Chicago’s parades should happen this weekend, even as event organizers and city officials said the celebrations would go on as planned.

 

There’s a precedent for a public spectacle causing serious public fallout during an outbreak.

 

[The latest] Coronavirus in Illinois updates: Chicago St. Patrick’s Day parades canceled Wednesday amid COVID-19 spread 

In 1918, Philadelphia went ahead with a parade meant to drum up support for the sale of bonds to fund the U.S. effort in World War I, despite concerns about the burgeoning Spanish flu. Philadelphia then saw particularly high flu rates, and the decision to hold the parade has been blamed by historians.

 

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(FROM CHICAGO) – Resurrection College Prep joins Bernard Zell Anshe Emet Day School in closing over coronavirus concerns

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By  – 3/10/2020

Resurrection College Prep High School on the Northwest Side Tuesday morning became the latest Chicago area school to announce a closure because of concerns about the new coronavirus.

The private, all-girls Roman Catholic school, at 7500 W. Talcott Ave. in the Norwood Park West neighborhood, told parents to arrange pickup for their children as of 10 a.m. Tuesday after it was learned a member of its community had contact with someone who tested positive for COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus. The school also will be closed Wednesday and a deep cleaning of the property will be conducted, school officials wrote in a social media post.

A Lakeview synagogue and attached day school also were closed Tuesday because a member of the synagogue who has children in the school tested positive for COVID-19, a rabbi with Anshe Emet said.

 

Bernard Zell Anshe Emet Day School and Anshe Emet Synagogue sent out email notices Monday to families who have kids in the primary school or who attend the synagogue. Rabbi Michael Siegel said a parent was tested Monday and later made Siegel aware the result was positive.

Siegel, along with Gary Weisserman, head of the school, said the decision to close the school and synagogue were made “out of an abundance of caution” while the children whose parent tested positive also are tested.

 

[The latest] Coronavirus in Illinois updates: Here’s what’s happening Tuesday with COVID-19 in the Chicago area 

“Late this evening we received confirmation that the parent has tested positive for COVID-19. While the Department of Public Health advised that closure is not required, out of an abundance of caution we are canceling school (and all after-school activities) … while we continue to consult with public health officials,” Weisserman wrote in an email.

Siegel said the person who tested positive has not been on campus within the last month and is self-quarantined at home along with the entire family.

 

“To be very clear, no Bernard Zell student or staff member has been diagnosed with COVID-19, and based on conversations with medical experts, we believe the risk to our students and faculty is low. This individual’s spouse and children remain asymptomatic but will undergo testing first thing in the morning,” Weisserman said.

Since the school and synagogue share the same space, the building will be closed and office staff was told to stay home Tuesday. The building is to undergo a deep cleaning of all surfaces, officials said.

 

The announcements come in the wake of other school closures.

 

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Loyola Academy, a private Jesuit high school at 1100 Laramie Ave. in Wilmette, was closed Monday and Tuesday because a student at the school had contact with a person who has tested positive for COVID-19. School officials said the day would be spent coordinating with public health officials and doing an “enhanced cleaning” of the school.

Classes were canceled at Vaughn Occupational High School for the week beginning Monday, March 9, after a Chicago woman in her 50s who works there as a special education classroom assistant tested positive for coronavirus, marking the sixth case in Illinois.

 

There have been 11 cases of coronavirus in Illinois as of Monday night. Gov. J.B. Pritzker issued a statewide disaster proclamation, making Illinois the 14th state to declare an emergency in response to the outbreak of the respiratory virus. The proclamation will allow Illinois to tap additional state and federal resources to combat the spread of the new virus and better coordinate its response.

 

It was not clear whether the Anshe Emet case was one of the four reported in Chicago Monday. A city official did not immediately respond to a request for more information.

Check back for updates.

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(FROM CHICAGO) – Bernard Zell Anshe Emet Day School, synagogue in Lakeview closed after parent tests positive for coronavirus

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By 

A Lakeview synagogue and attached day school will be closed Tuesday because a member of the synagogue who has children in the school has tested positive for COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus, a rabbi with Anshe Emet said.

Bernard Zell Anshe Emet Day School and Anshe Emet Synagogue sent out email notices Monday to families who have kids in the primary school or who attend the synagogue. Rabbi Michael Siegel said a parent was tested Monday and later made Siegel aware the result was positive.

Siegel, along with Gary Weisserman, head of the school, said the decision to close the school and synagogue were made “out of an abundance of caution” while the children whose parent tested positive also are tested.

“Late this evening we received confirmation that the parent has tested positive for COVID-19. While the Department of Public Health advised that closure is not required, out of an abundance of caution we are canceling school (and all after-school activities) … while we continue to consult with public health officials,” Weisserman wrote in an email.

Siegel said the person who tested positive has not been on campus within the last month and is self-quarantined at home along with the entire family.

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“To be very clear, no Bernard Zell student or staff member has been diagnosed with COVID-19, and based on conversations with medical experts, we believe the risk to our students and faculty is low. This individual’s spouse and children remain asymptomatic but will undergo testing first thing in the morning,” Weisserman said.

Since the school and synagogue share the same space, the building will be closed and office staff was told to stay home Tuesday. The building is to undergo a deep cleaning of all surfaces, officials said.

The announcement comes in the wake of other school closures.

Loyola Academy, a private Jesuit high school at 1100 Laramie Ave. in Wilmette, was closed Monday and Tuesday because a student at the school had contact with a person who has tested positive for COVID-19. School officials said the day would be spent coordinating with public health officials and doing an “enhanced cleaning” of the school.

Classes were canceled at Vaughn Occupational High School for the week beginning Monday, March 9, after a Chicago woman in her 50s who works there as a special education classroom assistant tested positive for coronavirus, marking the sixth case in Illinois.

There have been 11 cases of coronavirus in Illinois as of Monday night. Gov. J.B. Pritzker issued a statewide disaster proclamation, making Illinois the 14th state to declare an emergency in response to the outbreak of the respiratory virus. The proclamation will allow Illinois to tap additional state and federal resources to combat the spread of the new virus and better coordinate its response.

 

Check back for updates.

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FINALLY! Trump To Withhold Federal Funding From Sanctuary Cities

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by Brock Simmons March 5, 2020

Thanks to last month’s ruling by the 2nd Circuit Court Of Appeals, Trump has now announced that the federal government will be withholding funding to sanctuary cities that harbor illegal aliens.

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The Hill reports:

President Trump on Thursday said his administration will begin withholding funding from self-described sanctuary cities after a federal court ruled last week that it could do so.

“As per recent Federal Court ruling, the Federal Government will be withholding funds from Sanctuary Cities,” Trump tweeted. “They should change their status and go non-Sanctuary. Do not protect criminals!”

The 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan ruled on Feb. 26 that the Department of Justice (DOJ) could withhold funding from cities and states that refuse to cooperate with the Trump administration’s crackdown on undocumented immigrants.

The three-judge panel found Congress had delegated authority to the attorney general to set conditions on the federal grant program it had created, called the Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant Program.

The decision came after multiple courts had ruled against the Trump administration on the issue, saying it lacked the authority to impose immigration-related conditions on certain funding.

A group of seven states and New York City sued the DOJ in 2017 after then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced that the agency would start withholding funding from local governments that refused to share information about undocumented immigrants or provide jail access to federal authorities investigating inmates’ immigration status.

This spells bad news for several of the far left lunatics who are in charge of many of the big cities in the country.

In fact, Center For Immigration Studies has put together a  map that shows all of these places that are now S.O.L.

Perhaps the next step will be to file criminal charges against those who have worked to protect and harbor illegal aliens.

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Mississippi Man Charged with Insurance Fraud After Allegedly Defacing Cars with Racist, Pro-Trump Graffiti

This looks to be another left-wing hate hoax.

By Shane Trejo – 3/3/2020

A Mississippi man has been arrested on suspected insurance fraud after he reported racist graffiti on two of his cars back in February, in what very well may be another left-wing hate hoax.

Mississippi resident Trumaine Foster said that he woke up to find two of his cars defaced with various racial slurs next to the word “TRUMP” on Feb. 4. Police took him into custody for evidence tampering and insurance fraud after he painted over the vehicles, although they stopped short at explicitly blaming him for defacing his own cars in the first place.

The individuals in the community do not necessarily see Foster as some kind of victim. Shelby and Bradley Littleton, who are neighbors to Foster, claimed that the “hoax just kind of made us look silly” and “to make something up, that just does not make sense.”

Foster is now being held in the the DeSoto County Jail and is set to make a court appearance on Wednesday.

This may be the latest in a series of hate hoaxes that have happened across the country since the election of President Trump.

The most prominent hate hoax has come from Jussie Smollett, the third-rate actor who was caught poorly faking a hate crime in Chicago early last year:

Chicago actor Jussie Smollett was charged by a Cook County special prosecutor with six counts of disorderly conduct related to lying to the police on Tuesday. Dan Webb, a former U.S attorney appointed by Judge Michael Toomin, announced the charges as the result of a grand jury investigation.

Smollett had appeared to escape criminal repercussions for a hoax he orchestrated of January 2019, in which he paid two Nigerian brothers to play the role of Trump supporters and “attack” him in a fake racially charged event. Smollett was originally charged by prosecutors with filing a fake police report, but evaded punishment when a suspect district attorney ordered the charges dropped on the basis of Smollett’s supposed community service.

But he won’t use his ‘get out of jail free’ card after all. Webb was appointed by Judge Toomin six months ago to investigate the circumstances surrounding the suspicious dropping of Smollett’s charges. In a statement, the special prosecutor explained his decision to file new criminal charges against Smollett for his orchestration of the hoax.

“The grand jury’s investigation revealed that Jussie Smollett planned and participated in a staged hate crime attack, and thereafter made numerous false statements to Chicago Police Department officers on multiple occasions, reporting a heinous hate crime that he, in fact, knew had not occurred.”

The hate hoax epidemic is continuing throughout the country, enabled by a Democrat Party and fake news media that is always happy to amplify dubious stories.

 

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Suspected coronavirus case being treated at University of Chicago Medical Center as four other cases reported in Illinois

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Katherine Rosenberg-Douglas
By 
3/3/2020

A person suspected of being infected with the coronavirus is being treated at the University of Chicago Medical Center, the fifth case to be reported in Illinois.

The hospital said it was waiting for lab test results to back up its suspicions. No details were released about the patient.

“We are awaiting lab tests to see whether this patient has COVID-19. Not sure how soon we will get back results,” hospital spokeswoman Lorna Wong wrote in an email Tuesday morning.

 

On Monday, the third and fourth cases in Illinois were reported: A husband and wife in their 70s both tested positive for coronavirus, but the results still need to be confirmed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The man was being treated at Northwest Community Hospital and his wife was under quarantine at home, officials said. Two other cases in Illinois have been confirmed by the CDC.

Wong said the hospital has been “preparing for this eventuality” since coronavirus first became a global public health threat in January.

 

“Senior hospital leadership and leaders from our infectious diseases and infection prevention teams, along with other expert clinicians, are working closely with local, state and federal health officials and continue to apply up to date recommended guidelines,” she said in an emailed statement.

“We have the utmost confidence in the dedicated and highly trained team composed of nurses, physicians and other health care professionals who are providing care for this patient,” it said.

 

Wong said the hospital wanted to release information as early as was possible, while awaiting official confirmation of the diagnosis from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

“We will continue to update you as this situation develops, but wanted to immediately inform you,” she said.

 

On Monday, Arlington Heights School District 25 said two staffers and two students would be staying home as a result of possible exposure to a person who is related to a hospital worker who encountered a patient with coronavirus.

 

[Most read] At least 19 people dead after tornadoes shred Nashville overnight 

At least 15 states have reported confirmed cases of coronavirus. At least six people have died from the disease in Washington state.

 

Field Museum, Art Institute enact COVID-19 travel bans for staff »

The disease has hit at least 70 countries, with 90,000 cases and 3,100 deaths. The vast majority of cases and deaths have been in China. While the number of new cases recorded daily in that epicenter country has declined for weeks, the virus continues to spread fast in South Korea, Iran and Italy, prompting increased travel warnings and restrictions.

 

In Illinois as of Monday, 102 people are being or have already been tested for the virus, including the four people whose tests have come back positive and 79 people who tests have come back negative, with 19 tests still outstanding, according to state officials. A total of 286 people were being monitored by health officials as of Monday and state health officials are working to create guidelines for those who work with the most vulnerable patients, state officials have said. Several of the cases, and deaths, in Washington state have been among patients at a nursing facility.

The state has a hotline people can call with questions or to report suspected cases, 800-889-3931. They can call the Office of Consumer Health Insurance at 877-527-9431 about their insurance coverage.

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Lawmakers Introduce Bill That Would Stop Grants to Sanctuary States That Give Driver’s Licenses to Illegal Immigrants

by Cassandra Fairbanks February 17, 2020

House and Senate Republicans have introduced legislation that would block certain federal funds from sanctuary states that allow illegal aliens to obtain driver’s licenses.

The Stop Greenlighting Driver Licenses for Illegal Immigrants Act would stop Justice Department (DOJ) grants that are a top source of federal criminal justice funding for states.

The legislation would target states that “defy federal immigration enforcement or that allow illegal aliens to get driver licenses without proof of lawful presence” and those that “prohibit or restrict a local or State government entity or official from collecting or sending to or receiving from the Department of Homeland Security immigration enforcement information.”

In the Senate, the legislation is being introduced by Tennessee Senator Marsha Blackburn and co-sponsored by Sens. Tom Cotton, R-Ark.; Kevin Cramer, R-N.D.; Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va.; Kelly Loeffler, R-Ga.; Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, and Mike Rounds, R-S.D. Companion legislation is being introduced in the House by Colorado Rep. Ken Buck. His bill is co-sponsored by 21 other lawmakers.

“Tennesseans know all too well what can happen when illegal immigrants are granted driver licenses,” Blackburn said in a statement. “While Tennessee and many other states prohibit driver licenses for illegal aliens, a growing number of states are moving in the opposite direction and unleashing dangerous open borders policies. Immigrants must follow the proper federal process and obtain citizenship or lawful status before obtaining a state driver license.”

“In America, no one is above the law,” she added.

Blackburn’s office estimated that states that issued licenses to illegal aliens received nearly $53 million that would be impacted by this new legislation during the 2019 fiscal year.

The NCSL reports that fifteen states and the District of Columbia have enacted laws to allow unauthorized immigrants to obtain drivers licenses. These states—California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Utah, Vermont and Washington—issue a license if an applicant provides certain documentation, such as a foreign birth certificate, foreign passport, or consular card and evidence of current residency in the state.

“In 2019, New Jersey, New York and Oregon became the most recent states to enact legislation extending drivers licenses and identification cards to those without proof of lawful presence,” their report noted.

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Customs and Border Patrol Set to Deploy Elite Units to Sanctuary Cities to Assist ICE

CBP is serious about enforcing immigration law, even in cities that intend to flout it.

By  

Customs and Border Patrol is preparing to redeploy some of the agency’s highly trained tactical personnel throughout the nation’s “sanctuary cities” in order to support Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

The New York Times reported on the development Friday, that signals the Department of Homeland Security(which presides over both entities) is dead serious about national immigration enforcement, even in scofflaw municipalities that have sought to neuter it.

According to the report, more than 100 of CBP’s agents are being deployed throughout the nation to assist in ICE operations. It’s possible the agents could be tasked with apprehending illegal alien fugitives who are released onto the streets from local jail custody. They’ve been described as members of a unit known as BORTAC, an unit of personnel analogous to CBP’s SWAT team.

It’s common for sanctuary city jurisdictions to release individuals who are often violent criminals from custody, ignoring ICE detainer requests that the fugitives be instead handed over to face federal charges for immigration violations.

Sanctuary cities often create unnecessary risks to public safety by forcing ICE to arrest dangerous criminals off of the streets, when they could’ve been simply handed over from municipal jail systems to the federal agency. Eric Garcetti, the mayor of one of America’s biggest cities, openly admits that Los Angeles simply does not participate in immigration enforcement.

If scofflaw cities such as Philadelphia and Los Angeles are truly determined to undermine immigration law enforcement, then so be it. Attorney General Bill Barr has followed the lead of his predecessor, Jeff Sessions, in instituting new measures to punish the open borders cities, restricting them from federal law enforcement programs.

Conservatives shouldn’t be afraid of advocating for a strong federal government that will step in to perform the law enforcement duties sanctuary cities are cowering away from.

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