New Poll Shows Brutal Impact Of Super PACs

HOME POLITICS NATIONAL NEWS WORLD ECONOMY SPORTS ENTERTAINMENT Joe Conason Carl Hiaasen Connie Schultz E.J. Dionne Gene Lyons Jonathan Alter April 25, 2012 THE BIG STORY, BY GENE LYONS With Trayvon Martin Shooting, Truth Is Still Elusive Almost from the beginning, there were two aspects of the George Zimmerman as racist assassin story that made little sense. First, who calls the police, then murders a total stranger in cold blood knowing that they're minutes away? Second, how does a 28 year old man with a desk job catch a fleeing 17 year-old high school athlete anyway? READ MORE FEATURED AUTHOR: MICHAEL LIND What Will America Build Next? In the early twenty-first century, Paterson, New Jersey, is a troubled city in a troubled country. The city that traces its origins back to Alexander Hamilton's Society for Establishing Useful Manufactures has lost most of its manufacturing businesses to other countries and is plagued by poverty, crime, and urban decay. But 20 miles south, everything looks different. READ MORE BUDGETS New California Taxes Pay For Pensions, Not Schools Most Californians would be surprised to learn that 100 percent of education's share of the tax increase proposed by Governor Jerry Brown will go to pensions instead of classrooms. The problem wasn't caused by teachers, students, taxpayers or California residents. But who is responsible? READ MORE FEATURED COLUMN: JIM HIGHTOWER Mitt Romney And The Private-Equity Hustle What are these phantasmagoric money machines that they call "private-equity firms?" They're much in the news because a fellow who was a private-equity magnate is presently running for president. Mitt Romney now claims that, because of his success in that business, he knows how to "fix" our economy. Before you cheer that, note that private equity whizzes are all about The Fix -- not necessarily a good thing. They start by borrowing big piles of cash at high interest rates from rich speculators to buy out XYZ Corp. READ MORE Super PACs Poll: Are SuperPACs Already Affecting November Vote? A national poll released Tuesday shows voters widely believe that Super PACs cause corruption and their predominance in the 2012 campaign is already affecting decisions by some voter groups about how -- and even whether -- to cast their ballots. READ MORE CAMPAIGN 2012 Romney Sweeps Five Primaries, Inches Toward General The Republican presidential nomination all but in hand, Mitt Romney is refocusing his efforts on challenging President Barack Obama, raising cash for the battle ahead and reconciling with onetime primary rival Rick Santorum. "Tonight is the start of a new campaign," the former Massachusetts governor said Tuesday night as he celebrated a sweep of five primaries. He blasted Obama as a man whose time in office has been marked by "false promises and weak leadership" in a time of economic struggle. READ MORE CARTOON OF THE DAY   (c) 2012 Eastern Harbor Media, LLC. All Rights Reserved. 28 West 27th Street, Suite 502 New York, NY 10001

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Wednesday, April 25, 2012

Boy with heart condition found in Alsip | VIDEO A child with a life-threatening heart condition was at a Chicago-area hospital Wednesday after he was taken from a St. Louis hospital and found later in southwest suburban Alsip. Hudson murders trial focuses on 7-year-old victim | VIDEO Jennifer Hudson was in the building but not the courtroom for the start of the third day of testimony in the trial of the man accused of killing three of her family members. Bodies stacked at Cook Co. morgue to be buried Two dozen indigent people whose bodies were among several hundred allowed to stack up at a county morgue will be buried Wednesday in Chicago. Free vaccines for Illinois kids Parents can get their children free immunizations without appointments this week for National Infant Immunization Week. Coach accused of stealing from youth baseball team | VIDEO Police in Hobart say a team of 11-year-old baseball players is out of thousands of dollars. The money was supposed to go towards uniforms and equipment, but investigators charge the coach stole it. Report: Fine hike proposed for reselling Wrigley stickers There's a new proposal to hike fines for reselling residential parking permits around Wrigley Field. MORE STORIES Strange News Fans hope goat walk will break Cubs curse | VIDEO Tow truck driver leads police on loopy pursuit Ga. granny thwarts 2 would-be robbers in shootout Student arrested after taunting police on Twitter | VIDEO Heart Attack Grill patron falls ill; 2nd since Feb Consumer BBB: Financial Literacy Month | VIDEO Google launches digital storage unit Tory Johnson: Best Chicago Bargains, Career Expos | VIDEO Escalating Bank Overdraft Fees Consumer Reports: GPS devices for pets Healthbeat Free vaccines for Illinois kids Video games may promote healthy aging Number of Americans with high cholesterol dropping Report: Childhood obesity rates leveling off Survey: Cardiologists' prevention training lacking MOST POPULAR Pilar Sanders barred from Deion Sanders' home Boy with heart condition found in Alsip 2 south suburban girls missing since Sunday ACLU: Secret Service has set NATO security perimeter Fans hope goat walk will break Cubs curse All Most Popular

Advertisement TODAY'S WEATHER OUTLOOK 63°F 52°F Rather cloudy; morning showers followed by a shower or thunderstorm around this afternoon Hour-by-Hour | 7 Day Forecast | Radar & Satellite TONIGHT ON ABC Lottery Results Your Daily Horoscope Fans hope goat walk will break Cubs curse It's still early in the baseball season, but five extreme Cubs fans are on a mission to break The Curse of the Billy Goat. VIDEO: Cubs fans walk goat Billy Goat Tavern celebrates 75 years SLIDESHOW: Historic Wrigley Field Au Cheval: Eclectic mix on the menu Parents who have kids in their teens know it's important a restaurant be as cool as the food is good. That's exactly what they'll find at Au Cheval. More from ABC7's Hungry Hound

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Tuesday, April 24, 2012

Photo, update on Senator Mark Kirk recovery | VIDEO Senator Mark Kirk ''is mentally sharp,'' and meets with his staff almost daily, according to his doctor at Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago Center. Jennifer Hudson back in court for murder trial | VIDEO Prosecutors at the William Balfour trial began to focus on the evidence in the case Tuesday morning, one day after emotional testimony from Jennifer Hudson about the murders of three members of her family. Aldermen to vote on debated infrastructure plan | VIDEO After getting some extra time to consider it, the Chicago City Council is expected to vote Tuesday on a controversial infrastructure plan. 3 Bulls championship rings found in Stroger locker Imagine finding three Chicago Bulls Championship rings inside a storage locker sold at auction for just $450. Man charged in fatal Brighton Park hit-and-run A 31-year-old Chicago man has been charged in the hit-and-run death of a woman in Brighton Park Saturday. Phoenix Coyotes end Chicago Blackhawks season His 6-foot-4, 218-pound frame blocking all access to the goal, Mike Smith pushed away shots from all angles and sent the Phoenix Coyotes into unfamiliar territory -- the second round of the Stanley Cup playoffs. MORE STORIES Strange News Beautiful Bulldog pageant in Iowa 9-year-old boy catches shark DA: Pa. man hid phone in jail in prosthetic leg Detective bumps into cigarette-buying suspect New Mexico fat cat weighs in at nearly 40 pounds Consumer Tory Johnson: Best Chicago Bargains | VIDEO Escalating Bank Overdraft Fees Consumer Reports: GPS devices for pets Starbucks to open in six Disney locations Making Family Travel Fun | VIDEO Healthbeat Number of Americans with high cholesterol dropping Reports of teens drinking hand sanitizer Study: 'Brain freeze' may cause migraines Appendix removal: Huge sticker shock in study With healthy lifestyles, men may live longer MOST POPULAR Tory Johnson: Best Chicago Bargains Police: Boy's death in Hoffman Estates accidental Hospital worker's body found after allegedy attacking co-worker Blagojevich 'same old Rod' in prison Man charged in fatal Brighton Park hit-and-run All Most Popular

Advertisement TODAY'S WEATHER OUTLOOK 64°F 46°F Times of clouds and sun Hour-by-Hour | 7 Day Forecast | Radar & Satellite TONIGHT ON ABC Lottery Results Your Daily Horoscope How did you get to the CTA train today? Walk? Bike? Drive? The city wants to know how passengers are getting to their CTA train stations- and what challenges they faced in getting there. Read the CTA survey (PDF) Tory Johnson: Best Chicago Bargains Every week on ''Good Morning America,'' Tory Johnson brings viewers big savings on exclusive deals, many of which support small businesses across the country. This morning, she had five super savings only for WLS viewers.

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Pledge No Kid Hungry

--- Sponsored Email --- Dear National Memo Reader: Nothing is sadder than the cry of a hungry child, and no issue is more important than the deplorable number of hungry children in America today. We urge you to read and respond to this vital message from Share Our Strength about how you can help to end childhood hunger in our country. Sincerely, Harold Itzkowitz Associate Publisher on behalf of The National Memo Team Dear Reader, A fifth of our youngest generation is struggling with hunger. That's right: 1 out of every 5 children in America — the world's most prosperous country — will face hunger this year. The good news is that, together, we can change that and really end childhood hunger in America. The solution is achievable, but it will take the support of National Memo readers like you to help us get there. Many of these hungry kids live in households with working parents that are struggling to make ends meet and put food on the table. And there are long-term consequences. Children who miss meals perform poorly in school, are more likely to get sick and exhibit more behavioral problems, all of which put their futures at risk. Kids aren't hungry because we lack food. In fact, we have an abundance of it. Kids are hungry in this nation because they lack access to available food and resources that already exist. That's what No Kid Hungry is doing: closing the gap between the programs that exist — like school breakfast and summer meals — and the kids who need them. You can be a part of this solution. Please join the No Kid Hungry campaign today by saying you will help bring an end to childhood hunger in America. Every child we fail to reach is a child whose future could be compromised. It may be the second grader in Colorado whose school we've not yet convinced to adopt breakfast-in-the-classroom or the siblings in New Mexico not able to get free meals in the summer. There is a greater imperative than ever before to close the gap between what we know and what we do. No Kid Hungry helps to close that gap. America should be able to take care of America's children. That's one commonly shared belief. It holds appeal to Democrats and Republicans, liberal advocates and conservative corporations. In today's bitterly divided political landscape such common ground becomes sacred ground. It's going to be a long, hard fight to end childhood hunger in America. But we can do it together. Will you take the No Kid Hungry Pledge to join our campaign today? By pledging your support, you'll be joining a growing team of parents, teachers, local leaders, and people who care. You'll also be taking a stand, not just to say that someone should end childhood hunger in America, but to say that we will. Sincerely, Billy Shore Founder and CEO ©Share Our Strength, 1730 M Street NW, Washington, DC 20036 Web site: www.strength.org Email: contactus@strength.org

GOP Hope: Jacko's Huckster Rabbi?

HOME POLITICS NATIONAL NEWS WORLD ECONOMY SPORTS ENTERTAINMENT Joe Conason Carl Hiaasen Connie Schultz E.J. Dionne Gene Lyons Jonathan Alter April 24, 2012 THE BIG STORY, BY JOE CONASON Will GOP Exploit Secret Service, GSA Scandals? Colombian prostitutes and crazy Vegas partying inspire hot headlines and infuriate the public. When Senators like Joe Lieberman demand that the President be "held accountable," however, surely nothing is there. So why do Republicans believe they can use the scandals against Obama? READ MORE A GRAND OLD PARTY Protesting GOP, Huntsman Torches Career Former Utah governor Jon Huntsman, the conservative Republican who once hoped to steer his party toward moderation and rationality, has thrown in the towel, comparing the GOP to China's Communist Party. "This is a guy who's pouring gasoline on his political career and setting it on fire," said Rick Wilson, a veteran Republican strategist. READ MORE TODAY IN STUPID Major University Plans To Kill Computer Science Dept. The University of Florida announced plans this week to eliminate its computer science department, saving $1.7 million while enraging students and faculty. Said a "shocked" Zvi Galil, dean of Georgia Tech's College of Computing, "It is unbelievable that a major AAU university would even contemplate such an action..." But the same university budget added insult to injury with millions in extra funding -- for a certain non-academic program. READ MORE FEATURED COLUMN: CARL HIAASEN Convicting Zimmerman Won't Be Easy It will be astonishing if George Zimmerman is convicted of second-degree murder for shooting 17-year-old Trayvon Martin. Not that Zimmerman was right to the pull the trigger, but that particular charge will be extremely difficult to prove. Why Special Prosecutor Angela Corey didn't file for manslaughter instead has lots of smart lawyers scratching their heads. READ MORE FAMILY VALUES New GOP Hope: Michael Jackson's Huckster Rabbi Shmuley Boteach is best known as the Hasidic rabbi who served as Michael Jackson's spiritual adviser. Do Republicans really believe he can capture a New Jersey Congressional seat? READ MORE FEATURED COLUMN: JEFF MADRICK French Voters Counter Austerity With Democracy Can democracy be raising its wonderful, if often lazy, head in Europe? Too often there is skepticism that democracy itself -- the will of the people -- can lead to wise economic decisions and that the American founding fathers were all fearful of the rule of the masses. I have long held the opposite view. READ MORE CARTOON OF THE DAY   (c) 2012 Eastern Harbor Media, LLC. All Rights Reserved. 28 West 27th Street, Suite 502 New York, NY 10001

Cynthia Brim | Cook County Judge Suspended after Being Charged with Misdemeanor Battery

Cynthia Brim | Cook County Judge Suspended after Being Charged with Misdemeanor Battery:

Judge Brim should not have acted as reported, but she was correct about the racist and bigots in the South Holland Police Department and some surrounding suburbs of Chicago. These racist and bigots target blacks and Hispanics for traffic citations and other crimes where whites are given privilege. I have been writing about the antics of the South Holland Police Department for over 10 years. I am glad Judge Brim stood up as a Judge and pronounced the anger of many non-white Americans. I do not condone her behavior. She could have stood for what is right in many other ways. She had a great advantage being a judge and knowing how racism is alive in America and in South Holland and most of the surrounding suburbs of Chicago. My URL is http://clickforjusticeandequality.blogspot.com for more information on the South Holland Police Department and their racist attitudes, character, and behavior.