Politics Archives

BY TIM HEALEY

President Barack Obama was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize today, and reaction on Twitter is mixed.

Word is out this morning that President Barack Obama will travel to Copenhagen, Denmark, Thursday night to attend Friday's International Olympic Committee vote on the host of the 2016 Olympics.

Fellow ChicagoNow blogger Dennis Byrne recently posted about how the White House is using social media, noting it is "collecting and storing comments and videos placed on its social-networking sites such as Facebook, Twitter and YouTube."

When ABC Nightline co-anchor Terry Moran tweeted to his one-million-plus followers that President Barack Obama called Kanye West a "jackass" for his VMAs outburst at Taylor Swift's expense, Moran became the jackass.

As soon as word came out of Sen. Edward M. 'Ted' Kennedy's death, virtual memorials and respects began popping up on Twitter.

There were occasional inappropriate comments, but far and large the Twitterverse mourned Kennedy's death, on both sides of the political aisle and even across oceans.

The 2010 U.S. State Senate Election just got a whole lot more interesting.

The Election's Wikipedia page hasn't even been updated with the news yet (though that's sure to change any minute). But Chicago Inspector General David Hoffman is joining the race.

Illinois Congressman, Mark Kirk may have tweeted into "questionable legal territory" again, according to Progress for Illinois.

The issue at hand is if Kirk's Twitter page is an extension of his campaign, which it seems to be, then he may be violating the rule of campaigning on federal property by tweeting about visiting a Veterans Affairs hospital.

A blogger at Capitol Fax is calling out Republican Mark Kirk, a 2010 senate candidate, for two of his tweets on July 26 that may have breached military restrictions.

Kirk -- running for President Barack Obama's former seat -- is a Naval Reservist and he appeared to tweet while on duty, raising two potential issues.

Chicago's Wal-Mart debate elevated today when the superstore phone polled residents on whether or not they want a Walmart on 83rd Street and Seward.

By Dave Adams

Focusing on health-care reform, President Obama rallied 750 Democrats at the Hyatt Regency Thursday evening.

The Sears Tower has officially become the Willis Tower. This morning, Mayor Richard Daley and Joseph Plumeri, CEO Willis Group Holdings, unveiled a new sign in the lobby of the Tower indicating the name change had been completed.

President Barack Obama, well known to be a White Sox fan threw the first pitch at this year's MLB All Stars baseball game at Busch Stadium in St. Louis.

His left-handed pitch hit home to South-siders as he sported his White Sox jacket with popped collar, looking as presidential as one can wearing jeans.

Attorney General Lisa Madigan announced today she will NOT be running for senator or governor according to Lynn Sweet's Sweet Blog in the Chicago Sun-Times.

This comes as a little bit of a surprise to not only power players like Illinois senator Dick Durbin, but also to Chicago twitterers.

While Governor Pat Quinn was addressing state lawmakers today, some of them took to Twitter to keep the public updated on what was being said.

House Rep. John Fritchey (D-Chicago), told the Chicago Tribune that he had constituents against an income tax increase tweeting him during debates on the topic today.

By Molly Horan

While the Illinois budget is bleeding in the red, Governor Quinn is prepared to push "reset" on the budget stopwatch before tonight's midnight deadline to settle on something, Chicago Breaking News reports.

Per The Chicago Tribune, Gov. Pat Quinn tried to gain support for Illinois budget cuts and a proposed income tax increase on Tuesday at the Capitol in Springfield. The budgets cuts would come to some social services including the CTA in Chicago while Quinn has suggested to raise the income tax rate on individuals by 50 percent.

The cut backs and tax increase have met stiff opposition among state legislators while citizens have turned out in Springfield to protest the governor's proposals.

Twitter users in Chicago speak up:

1. 
   thenoth @GregHinz: Comptroller Hynes rips Quinn's tax hike plan. http://tinyurl.com/kt28xb I hope more people keep speaking up! 23 Jun 2009 from TwitterFox
2. 
   ibsuperwoman [expletive] pat quinn. illinois' unemployment is at a staggering 10%. so he cuts funding to social services. I GOTSTA GET OUTTA THIS STATE! 23 Jun 2009 from Ping.fm
3. 
   Slim_Goodie Did I 4get 2 mention I attended a march/protest 2day? Folks N illinois R trying 2 get legislators 2 raise Ncome taxes 2 save human services 24 Jun 2009 from UberTwitter
4. 
   queenbizzy1118 IL lawmakers, here's a thought to balance the budget: why don't you all work for $1 for two years instead of raising my taxes? 24 Jun 2009 from TweetDeck
5. 
   2016olympicbid $61 million in service cuts coming for Chicago area transit despite tax increases. Daley's mismanaged CTA primary problem 24 Jun 2009 from web
6. 
   jaymesiemer It angers me that Gov Quinn is holding soc service workers hostage in his budget. Do the next cuts really have to be made to foster kids? 24 Jun 2009 from web

What do you think of Quinn's proposals? Let us know by replying to @BTChicago on Twitter or leaving a comment here. Breaking Tweets Chicago: Your place for Chicago news, Twitter-style.