Speculation is at fevered pitch as Mitt Romney gets closer to announcing his running mate. We break down the possibilities.

Former Illinois Governor George Ryan is one step closer to getting out of prison.  Paris Schutz has more on today's decision.

A new study shows Chicago has more police officers per resident than other major U.S. cities.  So why is the city making national headlines with its crime rate?  We take a closer look.

A Chicago Public Radio report says Illinois' prison system is in a state of crisis, with overcrowding and new allegations of inhumane conditions. We have the latest.

One pension system in Illinois has been reformed-- it's the one at the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District. Could the plan be a blueprint for the other state pensions in trouble?

Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney makes his pitch in President Obama's backyard. Paris Schutz has more on why Romney is in Chicago, and the local business that snagged him.

Who would work for $1? Well, that's the salary for Chicago's deputy mayor. The present and future men who hold the position share insights on the city's fiscal outlook.

The governor sounds the alarm on pension reform, but are Republicans finally buying in? Find out what the top Republican in the Senate had to say.

We have some of your rather pointed comments about the state's pension crisis when we read some of your viewer mail.

Joel Weisman and his panel of journalists discuss the week's top headlines.

The board members of Mayor Rahm Emanuel's Infrastructure Trust get to know each other in their first official meeting. But what else is really known about this new method of financing city projects? Paris Schutz has the story.

Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke warns about a so-called fiscal cliff the nation is facing on January 2. We take up the automatic budget cuts some think could lead to a new recession.

Will there be any pension reform this year? We hear from all four members of the governor's pension working group.

Opening statements are underway in the trial of Drew Peterson, who is accused of murdering his third wife, Kathleen Savio. Elizabeth Brackett reports.

The mayor says he’s cut the city’s budget deficit in half. It’s the one piece of positive news in an otherwise ominous financial forecast. Are tax hikes and spending cuts inevitable? We take a look.

Gov. Pat Quinn calls for a special session to act on pension reform. He joins us. Then, Sen. Michael Noland from the governor's pension working group tells us more about the reforms.