Mayor Rahm Emanuel has been lobbying hard for a Chicago casino ostensibly to help tackle the city's pension and budget woes. Meanwhile, state Rep. Bob Rita is sponsoring two bills that would create as many as five new casinos in Illinois, one of which would be a mega casino in Chicago. How would a casino in Chicago impact the city? And how would it affect existing state casinos? 

In the wake of the Illinois Supreme Court’s pension ruling, we analyze the options on a way forward for Illinois and Chicago.

On Friday, May 8, the Illinois Supreme Court found the state’s 2013 pension reform law unconstitutional, affirming the ruling made six months earlier by a lower court. In its ruling, the Supreme Court said “crisis is not an excuse to abandon the rule of the law.” We discuss the decision with a panel of lawmakers.

Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle will discuss what last week's Illinois Supreme Court ruling means for her plan to change the county's pension system. 

The Illinois Supreme Court overturned the state’s 2013 pension reform law. Chicago Tonight hosts a special 30-minute edition on the ruling.

Joel Weisman and his panel of journalists discuss the Burge police torture reparations package. They also delve into the impact of director Spike Lee's upcoming movie that will reportedly be called Chiraq.

The Illinois Supreme Court has struck down the state's landmark 2013 pension reform law, upholding a lower court ruling that it violated the state constitution. In the ruling, the court rejected the state's defense that its contractual obligations were not absolute, because it reserved "emergency powers" in a time of crisis.

“Unachievable.” That's what fiscal watchdog group The Civic Federation calls Gov. Bruce Rauner's proposed 2016 fiscal budget in a new report released today. And the report comes a day after Rauner gave an unprecedented speech to the Chicago City Council, saying city officials shouldn't expect a bail out from the state. Tonight we talk with a panel of experts about what this means for the city and the state.

There’s good and bad news for Cook County's troubled jail system. Paris Schutz has more on the changing landscape of the Cook County criminal justice system amid some political hardball between top county officials. What progress is being made?

Gov. Bruce Rauner takes his controversial right-to-work agenda to Chicago's City Council. Paris Schutz has the latest.

For the first time in recent history, a sitting governor addresses the Chicago City Council. We’ll hear from several aldermen about their reactions to Gov. Bruce Rauner’s speech. 

Legislators have begun meeting in working groups to work on the budget and a compromise to Gov. Bruce Rauner’s turnaround agenda. And budget cuts remain a concern, as the Responsible Budget Coalition discusses all revenue options available. We discuss these issues and more with Chicago Tonight Springfield reporter Amanda Vinicky.

Regional Transportation Authority Chairman Kirk Dillard has just called for new tax revenue to help fund the region's mass transit systems which currently have a $30 billion project backlog. Chairman Dillard joins us to discuss the need for new revenue and the impact of proposed cuts to transportation funding by Gov. Bruce Rauner. 

New hearings on a possible Chicago casino are underway today. Is the mayor's wish for a casino to fund pensions finally close to coming true? Paris Schutz has the latest.

The governor gave a speech today he’s given many times, calling for lawmakers to pass his "turnaround agenda" that includes local right-to-work zones.

The Friends of the Parks says it won’t rule out a lawsuit against the Barack Obama Presidential Library even as Gov. Bruce Rauner is expected to sign a bill aimed at squashing potential legal hurdles for the library and the George Lucas museum.