Lauren FitzPatrick

Pentagon bars press photographers over ‘unflattering’ Hegseth photos Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s staff took issue with photos taken in a rare briefing last week and decided to shut out press photographers from two subsequent news conferences.

The Defense Department barred press photographers from briefings on the war with Iran because their photos of Pete Hegseth weren't flattering enough www.washingtonpost.com/business/202... @scottnover.bsky.social

Some Cook County Board commissioners skip more than 20% of their meetings A WBEZ analysis of board meeting records revealed two incumbents with primary challengers scored among the worst truancy rates in this term.

#ICYMI since I did amid all the #JesseJackson remembrances: Look how many meetings Cook County Board commissioners have missed! Counted up by @dmihalopoulos.bsky.social and Alden Loury and @amyqin.bsky.social chicago.suntimes.com/2026/03/06/c...

Fuzzy memories and hard facts: An SC accuser's claims against Epstein, Trump examined An alleged victim of Jeffrey Epstein gave FBI agents true accounts of her time growing up in SC. Claims she made about Donald Trump remain unsubstantiated.

Breaking: SC newspaper verifies portions of Trump accuser's story. Textbook journalism. Local journalism. Support your local news outlets. www.postandcourier.com/news/epstein...

DHS Ousts CBP Privacy Officers Who Questioned ‘Illegal’ Orders Department of Homeland Security leaders removed top privacy officers who objected to mislabeling government records to block their public release, WIRED has learned.

Scoop: DHS ousted multiple privacy officers at CBP after they questioned orders to purposely mislabel records about government surveillance to prevent their release under FOIA.

The Rev. Jesse Jackson comes home to South Carolina, the place that molded the man Chicago knew Jackson lay in honor at the South Carolina State Capitol on Monday. His ties to the state and Greenville, his hometown that nurtured him and inspired his activism, always remained strong.

LISTEN to the voices who formed the Rev. #JesseJackson into the SOMEBODY who inspired others to be Somebody, too. Take the trip with Somer Van Benton to South Carolina. chicago.suntimes.com/news/2026/03...

Thousands gather to celebrate the life of Rev. Jesse Jackson at Chicago funeral: Live updates Joe Biden, Bill Clinton and Barack Obama have arrived at Friday's services at House of Hope Baptist church.

I stand corrected. Click through for all the T-ness: chicago.suntimes.com/live/jesse-j... #MrT

Thousands gather to celebrate the life of Rev. Jesse Jackson at Chicago funeral: Live updates Joe Biden, Bill Clinton and Barack Obama have arrived at Friday's services at House of Hope Baptist church.

Gorgeous reporting by @chicago.suntimes.com and @wbez.org journalists that puts you right in the room for #JesseJackson's funeral, all except for the part where Mr. T is there in US flag overalls: chicago.suntimes.com/live/jesse-j...

So long, Rev. Jackson. Details on Friday’s homecoming service

What you need to know about the service honoring the civil rights icon who died on Feb. 17, that will feature three former presidents and thousands attending the memorial tribute Friday.

How to get to service honoring Rev. Jesse Jackson at Chicago's House of Hope

Thousands are expected at the Rev. Jesse Jackson's funeral service Friday at Chicago's House of Hope. Doors open at 9 a.m., with the service beginning at 11 a.m.

Leak and Sons prepares for Jesse Jackson's funeral, playing a 'small part' in the history of an iconic leader

For decades, the Leak family and the Jacksons were “intertwined.” Now, the family behind the long-time funeral business is tasked with planning and executing Jackson’s services and handling his remains.

Watch live: Homegoing service celebrates civil rights leader Jesse Jackson in Chicago Chicago native Jennifer Hudson is among the singers performing at a memorial for the civil rights leader who died last month. Former presidents Bill Clinton, Barack Obama and Joe Biden will attend.

Watch live: Homegoing service celebrates civil rights leader Jesse Jackson in Chicago

The Rev. Jesse Jackson comes home, to the South Carolina people who molded the man Chicago knew Jackson lay in honor at the South Carolina State Capitol on Monday. His ties to the state and Greenville, his hometown that nurtured him and inspired his activism, always remained strong.

The Rev. Jesse Jackson comes home, to the South Carolina people who molded the man Chicago knew chicago.suntimes.com/news/2026/03..., reports @bylaurenfitz.bsky.social from South Carolina

The public is about to be admitted to the statehouse building in Columbia. #revjessejackson

This is the choir from Allen University. Giving us “Take my hand, precious Lord.” Which of course was written in Chicago.

The casket has moved inside, under the dome. Relatives are filing in. #revjessejackson

Mrs Jackson not here today as her husband’s casket is being moved from a horse drawn carriage into the South Carolina statehouse. #revjessejackson

South Carolina’s statehouse where Rev Jesse Jackson’s home state will honor him this morning. #revjessejackson

NEW from ProPublica:

Guards at Trump's family detention camp are grabbing kids' writing, artwork, and crayons.

They've even taken one kid's drawing of Bratz dolls.

www.propublica.org/article/dill...

by @mckenziefunk.com and @micarosenberg.bsky.social

I remember when he showed up at bargaining days into the 2012 teachers strike, on Michigan Ave. Went in to try to mediate between @rahmemanuel.bsky.social's board of ed and the @ctulocal1.bsky.social

How Jesse Jackson shaped Chicago education, from protesting school segregation to reopening Dyett HS The civil rights leader spent six decades fighting to support Black students and the schools that serve them through protests, organizing, and his writing.

How Jesse Jackson shaped education in Chicago -->> chicago.suntimes.com/education/20...

Ex-strip club owner with ties to reputed mob figures a big campaign donor to Alexi Giannoulias Perry Mandera, his family and companies have contributed more than $100,000 to Giannoulias' campaign fund over the last few years as he contemplates a run for Chicago mayor. Mandera owned a strip club...

Ex-strip club owner with ties to reputed mob figures a big campaign donor to #AlexiGiannoulias chicago.suntimes.com/the-watchdog... by Robert Herguth

hi again

some very important personal news:

Moreover, it appears that Sinema used campaign funds to buy a pair of vehicles for over $70K each, paid $30K to a company that outfits high-end camper vans, and then sold herself one of the vehicles (through an LLC) for just $17K.

@campaignlegal.org filed an FEC complaint alleging former Senator Kyrsten Sinema abused her donor money, spending at least $700,000 in leftover campaign funds on personal expenses--flights, high-end meals, luxury hotels, and even a vehicle--in the year after she left office.

Then last January, he had an idea for a new bit: He’d set up a fake tip line that people could use to report anyone they thought was an undocumented immigrant. It was darker than his other stunts, but it felt topical, the kind of challenge he wanted to try. At the very least, he thought, he might get a few calls he could talk about at his next show. Instead, his website has received nearly 100 submissions from across the country: people reporting their neighbors, ex-lovers, Uber drivers, strangers they saw at the grocery store. One tip came from a teacher reporting the parents of a kindergarten student at her school. “I mean, they seem like nice people or whatever,” the woman told Palmer on the call. “But if they’re taking up resources from our county, I’m not into illegal people being here.”

This @drewharwell.com story about a man who set up a fake ICE tip line, and the sheer range of people who called in, is gutting www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2...

Pritzker demands $8.6 billion for Illinois residents after Supreme Court strikes Trump tariffs

Pritzker, a longtime and frequent critic of Donald Trump, also called out the president during his State of the State address earlier this week.

Join Aaricka Washington (IRE) and TyLisa Johnson (Poynter) for a 30-minute AMA on Instagram Live. We will be talking about new projects and programming at our orgs.

Friday, Feb. 27 at 12 p.m. PT/3 p.m. ET on our IG accounts @ire_nicar and @poynter_institute

Drop your questions in the comments.

Speaker Johnson denies Rev. Jackson family request to lie in honor at U.S. Capitol There is still a push for a viewing — possibly in another part of the U.S. Capitol — and the Congressional Black Caucus is actively pursuing options.

Speaker Johnson has declined a request by Jesse Jackson’s family to have the civil rights leader lie in honor at the U.S. Capitol, but alternative Washington locations are being discussed and the push for a Capitol viewing isn’t quite over.

chicago.suntimes.com/politics/202...

‘A war room’: Inside Epstein’s campaign to influence public opinion Epstein turned to a group of some of his closest confidants to help him counter the public narrative after a Miami Herald investigation.

Here’s a gift link to a Miami Herald story about Epstein’s pals who tried to help him develop a positive spin about his rape of children:
/ Steve Bannon, Trump ally
/ Ken Starr, ex-solicitor general
/ Kathyrn Ruemmler, Obama ex-deputy counsel
/ Michael Wolff, “journalist”
/ Noam Chomsky, academic

follow @cstguild.bsky.social for updates on bargaining!