Afternoon Briefing: Dexter Reed settlement in limbo
A controversial settlement remains in legislative limbo after a deal to award $1.25 million to the family of a man shot and killed by police after firing at officers first was not brought up for a planned vote today.
Aldermen had appeared poised for a tense debate over the settlement recommended by city attorneys for the family of Dexter Reed as a way to avoid a potentially more costly payout in court. But Ald. Pat Dowell, chair of the City Council's Finance Committee, withheld the settlement when it came up for a vote.
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President Donald Trump will pardon Democratic former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich, according to a person familiar with his plans. Trump commuted Blagojevich's 14-year sentence for political corruption charges during his first term. Read more here.
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Two major winter storms expected to hit Chicago area this week
Madigan jurors return for 9th day of deliberations
The six-bedroom, 5,750-square-foot Victorian painted lady-style house in Lakeview that rocker Billy Corgan owned from 1993 until 2001 sold once again Feb. 3, this time for $2.5 million. Read more here.
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Lurie Children's Hospital suspends gender-affirming surgeries for patients under 19, following executive order
McDonald's says improving international sales helped overcome US weakness in fourth quarter
The United Center crowd of 21,297, many of whom were wearing Steph Curry jerseys and unabashedly rooting for the Warriors Saturday night, left the building en masse after Curry was removed with just under four minutes remaining. Read more here.
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3 storylines for the Chicago White Sox entering spring training, including Luis Robert Jr. trade watch
3 questions for the Chicago Cubs entering spring training, including whether they will sign slugger Alex Bregman
Here is a clear case for why Lorraine Hansberry's story about a Black Chicago family is one of the best plays of the 20th century. Read more here.
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Concerts for Sir Andrew Davis: The longtime baton of Lyric Opera died last year, his son is safeguarding his memory
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The president said Palestinians in Gaza would not have a right to return under his plan for U.S. 'ownership' of the war-torn territory, contradicting other officials in his administration who have sought to argue Trump was only calling for the temporary relocation of its population. Read more here.
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Judge finds Trump administration hasn't fully followed his order to unfreeze federal spending
Third judge blocks President Donald Trump's order ending birthright citizenship for kids of people in US illegally
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Yahoo
5 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Ghislaine Maxwell moved from Florida to minimum-security prison in Texas
Ghislaine Maxwell has reportedly been moved from a low-security federal prison in Florida to the minimum-security Federal Prison Camp Bryan in southeast Texas. The move, first reported by The New York Sun on Friday, comes a week after Maxwell's meetings with U.S. Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche — President Donald Trump's former personal attorney — regarding dozens of people allegedly connected to Jeffrey Epstein. The pair spoke over a period of two days, during which Maxwell indicated she would testify before Congress if granted full immunity from future prosecution, among other conditions including a presidential pardon. It's not clear why the 63-year-old convict was transferred, though the 'sweetheart' deal places Maxwell in a prison that puts her much closer to her family, according to the Daily Beast. The Bureau of Prisons couldn't immediately be reached for comment. Its online inmate tracker didn't list a location for Maxwell as of Friday afternoon. Maxwell was sentenced to 20 years in prison in 2022 'for her role in a scheme to sexually exploit and abuse multiple minor girls with Jeffrey Epstein over the course of a decade,' according to the Justice Department. She's appealing her conviction. The president's association with the pair has been under heavy scrutiny amid public demands for the DOJ to release the so-called 'Epstein files,' as well as reports that Trump was once close friends with the billionaire, who died by suicide in 2019 while awaiting trial on federal sex trafficking charges. Trump told New York magazine in 2002 that he enjoyed spending time with Epstein. 'It is even said that he likes beautiful women as much as I do, and many of them are on the younger side,' he told the magazine. Trump has since called Epstein a 'creep' and distanced himself from the sex offender, who pleaded guilty in 2008 to soliciting prostitutes including a minor. Earlier this week, the president claimed he and Epstein had a falling out many years ago after the disgraced financier 'stole' teenage employee Virginia Giuffre from his Mar-a-Lago club, where she worked in the spa in 2000. Giuffre later became one of Epstein's most vocal sex abuse accusers. She died by suicide in April, according to her family, who believe Trump may know more about Epstein's alleged activities than he's telling. Giuffre is not known to have accused Trump of wrongdoing, and he's denied any impropriety involving Epstein and Maxwell. Giuffre's family members and two other alleged Epstein victims sent a statement to media outlets condemning Maxwell's prison transfer. 'President Trump has sent a clear message today: Pedophiles deserve preferential treatment and their victims do not matter,' the statement said. A Trump administration official told one NBC News reporter the any assertion Maxwell is getting preferential treatment is 'absurd,' saying prisoners are often moved for a multitude of reasons including safety concerns. FPC Bryan offers the lowest level of restrictions in the federal prison system — a step down from the low-security FCI Tallahassee that Maxwell was previously in. Camp Bryan famously houses convicted Theranos fraudster Elizabeth Holmes and 'Real Housewives of Salt Lake City' star Jen Shah, who was convicted in 2023 of running a nearly decade-long nationwide telemarketing scam. _____
Chicago Tribune
7 minutes ago
- Chicago Tribune
President Donald Trump removes official overseeing jobs data after dismal employment report
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump on Friday removed the head of the agency that produces the monthly jobs figures after a report showed hiring slowed in July and was much weaker in May and June than previously reported. Trump, in a post on his social media platform, alleged that the figures were manipulated for political reasons and said that Erika McEntarfer, the director of the Bureau of Labor Statistics, who was appointed by former President Joe Biden, should be fired. He provided no evidence for the charge. 'I have directed my Team to fire this Biden Political Appointee, IMMEDIATELY,' Trump said on Truth Social. 'She will be replaced with someone much more competent and qualified.' Trump later posted: 'In my opinion, today's Jobs Numbers were RIGGED in order to make the Republicans, and ME, look bad.' The charge that the data was faked is an explosive one that threatens to undercut the political legitimacy of the U.S. government's economic data, which has long been seen as the 'gold standard' of economic measurement globally. Economists and Wall Street investors have long accepted the data as free from political bias. Trump's move to fire McEntarfer represented another extraordinary assertion of presidential power. He has wielded the authority of the White House to try to control the world's international trade system, media companies, America's top universities and Congress' constitutional power of the purse, among other institutions. 'Firing the Commissioner … when the BLS revises jobs numbers down (as it routinely does) threatens to destroy trust in core American institutions, and all government statistics,' Arin Dube, an economist at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst, said on X. 'I can't stress how damaging this is.' After Trump's initial post, Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer said on X that McEntarfer was no longer leading the bureau and that William Wiatrowski, the deputy commissioner, would serve as the acting director. 'I support the President's decision to replace Biden's Commissioner and ensure the American People can trust the important and influential data coming from BLS,' Chavez-DeRemer said. Friday's jobs report showed that just 73,000 jobs were added last month and that 258,000 fewer jobs were created in May and June than previously estimated. The report suggested that the economy has sharply weakened during Trump's tenure, a pattern consistent with a slowdown in economic growth during the first half of the year and an increase in inflation during June that appeared to reflect the price pressures created by the president's tariffs. 'What does a bad leader do when they get bad news? Shoot the messenger,' Democratic Senate Leader Chuck Schumer of New York said in a Friday speech. McEntarfer was nominated by Biden in 2023 and became the Commissioner of the Bureau of Labor Statistics in January 2024. Commissioners typically serve four-year terms but since they are political appointees can be fired. The commissioner is the only political appointee of the agency, which has hundreds of career civil servants. The Senate confirmed McEntarfer to her post 86-8, with now Vice President JD Vance among the yea votes. Trump focused much of his ire on the revisions the agency made to previous hiring data. Job gains in May were revised down to just 19,000 from a previously revised 125,000, and for June they were cut to 14,000 from 147,000. In July, only 73,000 positions were added. The unemployment rate ticked up to a still-low 4.2% from 4.1%. 'No one can be that wrong? We need accurate Jobs Numbers,' Trump wrote. 'She will be replaced with someone much more competent and qualified. Important numbers like this must be fair and accurate, they can't be manipulated for political purposes.' Trump has not always been so suspicious of the monthly jobs report and responded enthusiastically after the initial May figures came out on June 6 when it was initially reported that the economy added 139,000 jobs. 'GREAT JOB NUMBERS, STOCK MARKET UP BIG!' Trump posted at the time. That estimate was later revised down to 125,000 jobs, prior to the most-recent revision down to just 19,000. The monthly employment report is one of the most closely-watched pieces of government economic data and can cause sharp swings in financial markets. The disappointing figure sent U.S. market indexes about 1.5% lower Friday. The revisions to the May and June numbers were quite large and surprising to many economists. At the same time, every monthly jobs report includes revisions to the prior two months' figures. Those revisions occur as the government receives more responses to its survey, which help provide a more complete picture of employment trends each month. In the past decade, companies have taken longer to respond, which may have contributed to larger monthly revisions. The monthly jobs report has long been closely guarded within the BLS, with early copies held in safes under lock and key to prevent any leaks or early dissemination.
The Hill
7 minutes ago
- The Hill
5 questions Trump faces after dismal jobs report; BLS commissioner firing
President Trump's economic pitch took a serious hit Friday after the latest federal jobs report revealed stunning weakness in the labor market. He responded by firing the commissioner of the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) for what he called politically-motivated revisions that lobbed off hundreds of thousands of job gains earlier this summer. The dismal jobs report raised serious questions about the strength of the U.S. economy, especially in light of looming tariffs causing anxieties in the global market. Here are the five big questions facing Trump as he faces the fallout. How much worse does it get? After months of warnings from economists and weakening data from the private sector, federal jobs numbers have caught up to the concern. The July jobs report dramatically changed the picture of the U.S. economy, ramping up concerns fueled by Trump's tariffs and the uncertainty they unleashed. The U.S. added only 73,000 jobs in July and just 106,000 jobs since May — a three-month total barely enough to sustain the labor market for one month. 'Not only was this a much weaker than forecast payrolls number, the monster downward revisions to the past two months inflicts a major blow to the picture of labor market robustness,' wrote Seema Shah, chief global strategist at Principal Asset Management, in an analysis. 'More concerning is that with the negative impact of tariffs only just starting to be felt, the coming months are likely to see even clearer evidence of a labor market slowdown.' The U.S. economy needs to add 80,000 and 100,000 jobs each month just to replace those who leave the workforce for retirement or incapacity. Without a significant turnaround, the unemployment rate could begin to rise, and the overall economy could slow drastically. 'The U.S. slowdown is starting to take shape,' wrote Alexandra Wilson-Elizondo, global co-CIO at Goldman Sachs Asset Management, in a Friday analysis. She added that a decline in labor force participation, which is also bad for the job market, was keeping the unemployment rate from rising further. 'While overall levels are not flashing red, the trend is cause for concern,' she wrote. How does Trump adjust his tariff plans? Trump and top White House officials spent months laughing off the dire projections of economists, who feared his tariffs would tank the job market and boost inflation. That position may not be tenable after Friday. The July jobs report came out on what was supposed to be the final deadline for the imposition of Trump's 'reciprocal' tariffs. After insisting for weeks that he would not delay the deadline further, Trump announced Thursday evening that some countries would have an additional week to strike deals with the U.S. Trump's latest punt — which happened after the president is typically briefed on the jobs report — was the latest in a series of delays issued amid rough economic news or stock market turmoil. The president proposed much steeper tariffs during his 'Liberation Day' announcement in April, but delayed and weakened his plan after two weeks of turmoil in financial markets. Trump and top White House economic aides touted the benefit of federal revenue from import taxes, which are paid by the U.S. businesses and individual who purchase foreign goods. But the growing pressure of his tariffs could prompt further delays from Trump. Trump could also keep higher headline tariff rates while quietly making exemptions for key goods, undermining the overall goal of his import taxes while potentially avoiding some of the costs. 'A web of exemptions and, in the case of the deals, preferential rates means many key imports face lower tariffs or none. That significantly lowers the actual tariff rate, in many cases well below the quoted headline rate,' wrote Michael Pearce, deputy chief U.S. economist at Oxford Economics, in a Friday analysis. How does the Fed respond? The stunning July jobs numbers will boost pressure on the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates at its next policy meeting in September, and are already raising questions about whether it should have cut rates already. The Fed kept rates steady Wednesday as inflation continued to rise and the labor market appeared to be weakening at a much slower rate than seen in Friday's jobs report. While Fed Chair Jerome Powell acknowledged Wednesday the risks that the job market could weaken quicker than expected under the bank's moderately high interest rates, he said he and his colleagues were still unsettled about how Trump's tariffs could drive inflation higher. The Fed now appears to be in a quagmire with the country on track for both a weaker economy and higher inflation — a dynamic known as 'stagflation.' Lower interest rates could stimulate the sluggish labor market, but also drive inflation higher with additional money in the economy. Keeping interest rates unchanged could stave off inflation, but suffocate the economy into higher unemployment and slower spending. 'With persistent policy uncertainty, tariffs, and diminished immigration flows paralyzing employers, the U.S. economy is now flirting with job losses, revealing a labor market that is much weaker than most Fed policymakers had believed,' wrote Gregory Daco, chief economist EY-Parthenon, in a Friday analysis. 'The Fed is now behind the curve.' Will voters ding Trump as job approval sinks? Trump is largely fulfilling his campaign promises on the economy, including instituting tariffs, though that policy proved to be much more widespread than what he suggested while running for a second-term. He's also making good on mass deportation plans, which the administration is using to sell what they see as a stronger economy for the American worker. But some slices of voters don't appear to be singing Trump's praises. Trump headed into the big week on the economy with his job approval rating slipping, with net approval dropping 15 points, according to an Economist/YouGov poll. And his net approval rating also fell 9 points to its lowest rating yet last week in the Decision Desk HQ (DDHQ) average, with independents taking issue with Trump's actions on the economy and immigration. Consumer confidence ticked up only slightly in July, a sign that anxieties over the economy could be coming to a head as a result of the president's policies. Consumers also expressed more negative assessments of their economic situations overall. What impact will firing the BLS commissioner have? Experts and economists were left reeling Friday afternoon when Trump announced he was firing the commissioner of Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Erika McEntarfer. That cast doubt on the bureau's reporting standards and the type of revisions it makes on previously released reports. When Trump was later asked if that decision meant anyone providing him data he doesn't agree with could risk losing their job, he responded: 'I've always had a problem with these numbers.' In considering who could be McEntarfer's long-term replacement, Trump did not pinpoint experience in labor statistics as a qualification. 'We need people we can trust,' Trump said. 'I put somebody in who's going to be honest.'
