ICE’d out / ‘Embarrassing’ and ‘infuriating’ / $500 more for gas? / Quiz!

Chicago Public Square’s taking a few days off … to begin with, to join the Online News Association’s annual convention, convening in Chicago this year.

■ You’ll get a fresh news quiz a week from today, and then we’ll be back in full force Tuesday, April 7.

■ Between now and then, get your fix of Square-style news and commentary via Bluesky.

■ But on with news of the now:

ICE’d out. On the 42nd day of a partial government shutdown, the Senate early today OK’d funding for the Transportation Security Administration—but not immigration enforcement actions …

■ … making it, in NOTUS’ words, “the House’s problem now.”

■ Illinois state representatives—none of them Republicans—have advanced a bill to forbid federal immigration detention centers near homes, schools, daycare centers, parks, forest preserves, cemeteries or places of worship.

■ Men Yell at Me columnist Lyz Lenz’s Dingus of the Week: ICE at the airports.

■ The Onion: “Entire Spring Break Spent In Airport Security Line.”

Justice League. In what the Sun-Times says seems to be the first Chicago-specific alliance of its kind, ex-federal prosecutors—including three former U.S. attorneys—are teaming up to challenge their former department on matters such as election integrity and prosecutorial misconduct.

■ NPR alumnus Bob Garfield recommends a new “gotcha” question Democrats should ask Trump’s nominees for the federal bench.

■ A self-described “huge Trump supporter” from Winthrop Harbor has been convicted of threatening judges, doctors, lawyers, cops—and the president himself: “Especially you, Trump. You should be executed.”

‘The No Kings protests don’t scare Trump. Your friends do.’ Columnist and former U.S. Rep. Marie Newman says the White House is watching who you bring to tomorrow’s rallies.

■ CNN’s Brian Stelter foresees a brain-busting coverage challenge tomorrow for C-SPAN.

■ Most-tapped links in yesterday’s Square: Find a No Kings rally near you and check the deal for Chicago.

■ WTTW News reviews the evolution of Chicago police policies toward protests—changes credited with enhancing First Amendment rights here.

‘Embarrassing’ and ‘infuriating.’ Critics are piling on the president for taking almost five minutes during an unhinged Cabinet meeting yesterday to ramble on about … Sharpie pens. (Cartoon: Jack Ohman.)

■ The What Did Trump Do Today blog: That meeting exposed “a visible erosion of cognitive discipline in a sitting president” …

■ … who said he doesn’t care if the Iran war ends quickly or not.

■ Columnist Jeff Tiedrich: “Don Snoreleone snoozes again.”

■ The Philadelphia Inquirer’s Will Bunch (gift link) pegs last Monday as “24 hours that truly defined the decline of the American empire.”

■ In a first for a sitting president, the Treasury plans to put Trump’s signature on new paper currency.

‘How many fake trophies that were made specifically for him is this guy going to get?’ That’s Seth Meyers on House Speaker Mike Johnson’s presentation to Trump of the made-up “America First” award.

■ Jimmy Kimmel: “You know when you promise to buy your kids gummy worms if they have a good behavior day? It’s like that.”

‘Return to bad old days.’ Sun-Times columnist Neil Steinberg: “Our country is in full retreat regarding the environment.”

■ WBEZ: Climate change is fueling Illinois home insurance premiums’ surge.

■ Block Club: A new business development program aims to revive West Side communities devastated by flooding.

$500 more for gas? PolitiFact checks Democratic Sen. Ed Markey’s assertion that the Iran war will cost “every American driver … $500 more in gasoline prices at the pump this year.”

■ The Conversation: High oil prices can help and hurt development of renewable energy sources.

■ Yeah, but Breyer’s ice cream is on sale at Jewel for $2 a carton (with its maddening app).

Bearish Sanders. In a move squarely targeted at the Chicago Bears, Sen. Bernie Sanders is cosponsoring a bill that would require professional sports teams considering relocation to another state to give at least a year’s notice …

■ … and give governments a year to find another buyer or organize community ownership—like the Green Bay Packers’.

‘Teen takeovers’ are back. Another crowd of rowdy young folks descended on downtown Chicago Wednesday night.

■ Community activist and entrepreneur Ja’Mal Green, addressing those kids in the Tribune: “Being young doesn’t give you a free pass for breaking the law. You can’t shut down streets just because it’s trending.”

‘A devastating blow.’ State Rep.—and likely next West Side U.S. Rep.—La Shawn Ford is calling for an investigation of West Suburban Medical Center’s abrupt shutdown.

■ Patients were being moved out of the facility today.

‘It’s not yet a prairie fire, but it may soon become one.’ Columnist and former U.S. Labor Secretary Robert Reich sees some positive developments toward “getting big money out of our politics.”

■ Paul Starr at The American Prospect: “The Republican Party forgot it was conservative.”

So last week’s quiz was abnormal? With past Jeopardy! Tournament of Champions winner Fritz Holznagel still on break, The Conversation writes: “Thanks to Charlie Meyerson for hosting last week’s quiz! This week we return to normal programming.”

■ Predictably—a perfect score is so much easier when one’s devised the quiz—your Square columnist scored a mediocre 6/8 correct.

‘The first national radio newscast built American journalism.’ Veteran Los Angeles radio news anchor Rob Archer mourns the impending death of CBS News Radio.

■ Netflix is raising prices again.

■ Watch TV via Amazon’s Fire devices? Brace for an overhaul.

‘Largest one-day political protest in U.S. history’ / ‘Big Tobacco’ moment / Robots’ bad week

‘Largest one-day political protest in U.S. history.’ That’s what columnist Dan Froomkin anticipates for Saturday’s No Kings rallies across the country.

■ Find out where they’ll be near you.

■ Here’s the deal for Chicago.

■ Indivisible co-founder Ezra Levin to Rachel Maddow: “The day after No Kings, democracy won’t suddenly be saved. … So we need to build.”

■ Shia Kapos at Politico: As Democrats continue to overperform in legislative races across the country, Illinois Republicans are getting the chills.

Thanks, war. Beginning next month, the U.S. Postal Service will slap an Iran war-driven 8% “fuel surcharge” on package delivery.

■ The AP: At a Pentagon Christian service, Defense Secretary Hegseth prayed for “overwhelming violence … against those who deserve no mercy.”

■ States Newsroom: As the war drives up fuel prices, the EPA will let gas stations to sell a blended fuel containing 15% ethanol—usually barred in many Midwest states over the summer to cut smog.

■ The Tribune: A new global survey concludes that wildfires, dust storms and traffic made Chicago the nation’s third-most polluted major U.S. city last year.

‘A gift of grift.’ It’s a soft landing for former Trump national security adviser Michael Flynn, who pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI about his Russian ties.

■ Former AP D.C. bureau chief Ron Fournier: “Trump pardoned Flynn as part of the bogus claim that the Department of Justice’s investigation into Russia’s attempt to manipulate the 2016 election was a hoax. Now, for his self-inflicted trouble, Flynn will receive $1.2 million from the Trump administration.”

Social media’s ‘Big Tobacco’ moment. That’s how The New York Times (gift link) sees a pair of jury verdicts against Facebook parent Meta and Google’s YouTube for harms to kids using their services.

■ David Dayen at The American Prospect: “Their goodwill with the public has dissipated; their ability to buy off public officials has limited reach; and their attempts to transfer the fortunes they made on their platforms to the next generation of technology may become mired in a sea of litigation.”

■ The verdicts were victories for parents who contend the companies failed to protect young users. (Cartoon: Jack Ohman.)

■ Columnist Jill Filipovic: “Meta and YouTube went into this case believing they would easily win. They did not read the room.”

■ Columnist and lawyer Mitch Jackson sees it as just a wrist slap: “Meta and YouTube were found negligent for addicting a child to their platforms. A jury made them pay $6 million, which is about what Meta earns every 11 minutes.”

■ Coming to YouTube: A Jeopardy! spinoff.

R.I.P., ‘Metaverse.’ Facebook’s laid off 700 workers at Facebook and its virtual reality division.

■ ChatGPT parent OpenAI is pulling the plug on its text-to-video creation app Sora—billed as “the most powerful imagination engine ever built”—and walking away from a billion-dollar deal with Disney.

■ Popular Information: “Companies are using AI to pay workers as little as possible.”

Hospital down. Oak Park’s West Suburban Medical Center is closing “temporarily,” amid what it calls a financial “crisis.”

■ A hospital employee tells the Sun-Times: “We are having patients coming in and saying, ‘What do I do?’ … I don’t have anything to tell them.”

‘We will fight to preserve the raises of tipped workers.’ Mayor Johnson’s vetoed a City Council plan to cancel an increase in the minimum wage for those employees …

■ … but, as restaurant owners complain that increase is hurting business, the council’s considering a veto override.

‘A terrible blow at a time when anti-Jewish hate is on the rise.’ A council member mourns the resignation of a member of the city’s human relations commission …

■ … amid what the Sun-Times calls concerns that Johnson’s team tried “to whitewash a long-awaited report that was supposed to focus solely on antisemitism.”

■ H Kapp-Klote at The Chicago 312 newsletter: Rahm Emanuel’s top donor and Obama Foundation board member Michael Sacks “would like you to know he’s the real victim here.”

‘The central question remains: Where did the gunfire originate?’ As the White Sox launch another baseball season, the Tribune says the end may be near for a legal fight over a shooting in the team’s bleachers.

■ Two people were in custody in connection with the Tuesday afternoon shooting and killing near the United Center of a longtime developer and contractor with offices in the neighborhood.

■ Columnist Eric Zorn: “Can we extract meaning from the horrible, heartbreaking murder on the lakefront? Immigration hawks say yes, but the answers are not clear.”

Hail, baseball! Chicago’s forecast today raised the prospect of tornadoes and a fresh batch of large hail …

■ … which could make Opening Day for the Cubs, um, interesting.

■ But, hey, Chicago’s new “Abolish ICE” snowplow’s ready for action.

Not the worst thing that ever happened to Abe. Artifacts that a historian and collector of Abraham Lincoln memorabilia sold to Illinois’ Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum are seemingly now on the auction block—again.

■ See ’em here.

Robots’ bad week. Make that two food delivery robots that have smashed into Chicago bus shelters this week.

■ A City Council member: “It’s hard for this technology to operate safely in the city of Chicago.”

■ General Motors has begun testing self-driving “eyes-off” cars in Michigan and California.

Need an internet router? Good luck upgrading your setup now that the Trump administration has banned imports of foreign-made, consumer-level devices to share a single internet connection with all your wired and wireless gadgets.

■ Since that’s just about all of them, The Verge’s Sean Hollister sees this as another goof by “Brendan Carr, known dummy and anti-consumer FCC chairperson.”

■ Apple’s out with upgrades for its things’ operating systems.

How’re we lookin’? We’ve been messing around under the hood of the Chicago Public Square website coding. Poke around and holler if anything’s amiss.

■ Your suggestions for improvement of Square’s look and feel—on the web or in email—are always welcome here.

■ Mike Braden made this edition better.