Lightfoot to friends: It’s not goodbye

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Good Tuesday morning, Illinois. It was a delight to catch a ride with a friend instead of a ride share.

TOP TALKER

Mayor Lori Lightfoot pulled together her friends and supporters Monday to say farewell but not goodbye. “My work is not done,” she said. “I will roll up my sleeves in another form and fashion but continue on.”

No details yet on what that might be.

Monday was a celebration for Lightfoot, complete with a drum corps presentation. She spent much of her half-hour address lauding staffers who helped her lead Chicago through the pandemic, secure the city’s finances and elevate efforts for equity throughout the city.

“The mandate that I was given four years ago was to break up the status quo that failed our residents for far too long, and to chart a new path,” Lightfoot said. “A new compact between the government and the governed. And that’s what we did.”

Applause, applause: The crowd at the offices of the nonprofit BUILD Inc., a violence prevention group on the West Side, ate it up.

Lightfoot also took a swing at her critics and the media for all the “time and energy and ink” focused on how she operates. She acknowledged she had a four-letter word in her vocabulary. “That four-letter word was spelled H-O-P-E,” she said, her voice trembling with emotion. The crowd erupted in cheers.

We’ll have more from Lightfoot Wednesday from our one-on-one interview in her office.

Spotted in the crowd: Sen. Dick Durbin, City Treasurer Melissa Conyears-Ervin, Chicago Alds. Jason Ervin, Nicole Lee and David Moore, Clayco founder Bob Clark, Loop Capital CEO Jim Reynolds, Thresholds CEO Mark Ishuag, United Airlines government affairs exec Kristopher Anderson, One Chicago Fund President Sarah Pang, DuSable Museum CEO Perri Irmer and Jasculca Terman Chair Rick Jasculca.

You can listen to Monday’s speech here.

FROM THE PRESS CORPS:

Tearful farewell to fifth floor of City Hall, by Sun-Times’ Fran Spielman

Lightfoot says reform, equity and pandemic leadership will be her legacy, by WBEZ’s Mariah Woelfel, Tessa Weinberg

Equity is her ‘north star,’ by ABC 7’s Sarah Schulte

Claiming credit for ‘breaking up the status quo’ and ‘planting seeds,’ by WTTW’s Heather Cherone

Lightfoot rejects ‘mean’ mayor narrative, by Tribune’s Alice Yin

THE BUZZ

Presidential predilections: The jury’s still out on whether Ron DeSantis could beat Donald Trump in a Republican presidential primary.

DeSantis v. Pence: The Florida governor hasn’t announced a presidential run — yet. But if Friday’s Peoria-Tazewell Lincoln Day Dinner is any indication, he would trounce former VP Mike Pence, who’s also expected to make a run for president.

DeSantis is headlining Friday’s Peoria-Tazewell Lincoln Day Dinner and is drawing a crowd so large that organizers have had to expand the room space and add tables to accommodate the wait list.

More than 1,100 tickets have been sold, a record according to the Tazewell County Republican Party.

Compare that to Pence headlining last year’s dinner – when only 700 tickets were sold.

DeSantis’ appearance, made possible because of his friendship with Illinois Congressman Darin LaHood, has raised more than $240,000 for the Peoria and Tazewell Republican organizations.

A view of 2020: Peoria and Tazewell counties split on Trump in 2020. Peoria County voted for President Joe Biden 51.9 percent to Trump’s 45.6 percent. Tazewell County, meanwhile, voted for Trump 61.6 percent, compared to 35.9 percent for Biden.

If you are Bob Clark, Playbook would like to hear your take on what the next administration should be prepared for. Email [email protected].

At the state Capitol at 10 a.m. to give remarks at the Fallen Firefighters Memorial Service.

WHERE'S LORI

At the Claudia Cassidy Theater at 9:30 a.m. to announce $10 million in grants as part of the Chicago Arts Recovery Program.

Where's Toni

No official public events.

Thank you for reading Illinois Playbook! Drop me a line sometime: [email protected]

THE STATEWIDES

— DEEP DIVE | Springfield’s police chief got rid of a neo-Nazi. Then came the hard part: “The police department’s year of reckoning shows the difficulties of fighting far-right extremism in law enforcement,” via The Washington Post.

— POT POURRI: Cannabis operators big and small argue over who should oversee the industry in Illinois, by Tribune’s Robert McCoppin

— State, Naperville ask U.S. Supreme Court to reject injunction against high-powered gun bans, by Tribune’s Dan Petrella

— Illinois moves toward gender inclusivity as others move away, by The Associated Press’ Claire Savage

— Lobbying push: Uber takes its opposition to legislation being considered in Springfield to Democratic National Committee Chair Jaime Harrison, claiming the HB 2231 could lead to fewer drivers and higher prices when the Democratic Convention comes to Chicago next year. Sponsors of the bill say the bill holds rideshare companies to a stricter standard of care for their passengers. Letter here

— A more subtle approach: The American Council of Engineering Companies of Illinois has launched a digital campaign seeking support for legislative measures “that would retain and recruit engineers in an effort to close the skills-gap shortage while protecting Rebuild Illinois,” according to a release.

CORRUPTION CHRONICLES

Former Gov. Pat Quinn is launching “a taxpayer initiative to clean up Illinois political corruption” in the aftermath of last week’s conviction of four defendants who participated in Commonwealth Edison’s bribery scheme. He’s holding a presser today.

BUSINESS OF POLITICS

— Open legislative seat: The appointment process is beginning for state Rep. Lamont Robinson’s seat now that he’ll be serving on the Chicago City Council. Ald. Pat Dowell, the committeeperson for the 3rd Ward, will oversee the process. Applicants should submit their resume, cover letter and a copy of their voter registration card by Wednesday 5 p.m. via email to [email protected]. The Democratic Representative Committee for Robinson’s 5th District will meet Saturday. On the committee are Dowell, who has the highest weighted vote, Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle and Alds. Leslie Hairston, Michelle Harris, Mattie Hunter and Brendan Reilly.

— The Long Game: Emma Tai started out fighting school closings and ended up helping elect a mayor, by Ximena N. Beltran Quan Kiu in Chicago magazine

— Clarifying our winners list: SEIU Local 73 and SEIU HCII endorsed Mayor-elect Brandon Johnson in the first and second round of the mayor’s race. It was SEIU Local 1 that waited to endorse until after the first round.

CHICAGO

— Some aldermen express disappointment at Mayor-elect Brandon Johnson’s effort to reshape City Council, by Tribune’s John Byrne, A.D. Quig and Alice Yin

— Will Ramirez-Rosa’s new Council leadership roles be ‘big step forward’ for progressives — or kick in the pants to developers? Sun-Times’ Fran Spielman reports

— Why did it take Chicago cops more than 30 minutes to find a fatally wounded officer? Sun-Times’ Mohammad Samra and Tom Schuba report

— Congressman Danny Davis to make it official, will run again: “Chicago City Treasurer Melissa Conyears-Ervin last month said she was exploring a congressional bid, but would run only if Davis retired,” by Sun-Times’ Lynn Sweet.

— In IL-17: Republican businessman Rafael “Ray” Estrada announced he’s running for the seat held by Democratic freshman Congressman Eric Sorensen.

COOK COUNTY AND COLLARS

— Community mourns after Waukegan coach, counselor fatally shot while driving, by Daily Herald’s Mick Zawislak

— Patrick Ludvigsen returns to Prospect Heights council, this time as the mayor, via Daily Herald

Reader Digest

We asked for positive points about AI.

Matthew Beaudet: “AI can be utilized to assist in the reduction of a building’s energy consumption and carbon emission and also to enhance preventative maintenance for safety and cost-efficiency.”

Jerry Harrison: “AI hopefully will run households more smoothly, from turning up/down the heat and AC, to completing a grocery list, to changing furnace filters!”

John Straus: “AI will enable readers to search faster for answers to trivia questions.”

Jim Strickler: “It’s a great way to find out what information is floating around the internet about oneself.”

Stephen Yoshida: “Getting your GED has never been easier!”

What worries you most about a recession? Email [email protected]

Covid Update

— What goes away when the Covid health emergency ends this week: “The state of emergency is over and that will affect everything from free vaccines and tests to food assistance programs,” by POLITICO’s Daniel Payne, David Lim and Ben Leonard.

— Experts warn of costlier Covid care as emergency declaration ends, by Daily Herald’s Jake Griffin

THE NATIONAL TAKE

— POLITICO is named Pulitzer finalist for Supreme Court coverage, by POLITICO’s Kierra Frazier

— The first test of the Biden-Jeffries relationship comes with the global economy in the balance, by POLITICO’s Jennifer Haberkorn

— Vivek Ramaswamy and his ‘Vek Heads’ catch a spark, by POLITICO’s Natalie Allison and Lisa Kashinsky

— The Trump rape trial is headed to the jury. Here are the questions jurors will weigh, by POLITICO’s Erica Orden

TRANSITIONS

— Mollie Alexander Hogan is chief development officer and Wes Moran is chief financial officer at the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago. Hogan was development director for Minneapolis’ Guthrie Theater. Moran was VP of finance at Shedd Aquarium.

EVENTS

— Wednesday: Actor Tom Hanks talks to NPR’s Peter Sagal about his debut novel at Auditorium Theater. Tickets here

— Thursday: The Chicago Bar Association hosts terrorism expert Brian Michael Jenkins for a program on the fallout of Jan. 6. Details here

— May 20: Bally’s Chicago Casino holds a job fair at Credit Union 1 Arena (UIC Auditorium) from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. for jobs at the Medinah Temple casino location.

WEEKEND WEDDING

Due to a photo fumble, we’re congratulating these folks again.

— Dan McManus, director of Illinois strategic initiatives for Sen. Tammy Duckworth, and Courtney Jacquin, Duckworth’s Illinois comms director, were married at Bottom Lounge in Chicago. The two met working at Duckworth’s Chicago office and their wedding was officiated by Loren Harris, the senator’s deputy state director. Pic and pic!

— Chad Phillips, coordinator for Illinois strategic initiatives for Duckworth, and Leanne Beasley, tied the knot at the Jewel Box in Forest Park, St. Louis. Pic and pic!

TRIVIA

MONDAY’s ANSWER: Congrats to Mike Matejka and Andy Shaw for correctly answering that the town of Casey is known for big things.

TODAY’s QUESTION: What film footage shot in Chicago was so provocative it was repressed until shown before a Senate committee months later? Email [email protected]

HAPPY BIRTHDAY

World Business Chicago CEO Michael Fassnacht, Personal PAC founder Marcie Love, political consultant Larry Luster, Elevate Illinois CEO Janet Mathis, Heartland Alliance Senior Policy Advocacy Director Rachel Ruttenberg, BuiltIn Senior Editorial Director Nicholas Jackson and the late Chicago Mayor Anton Cermak.

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