Stories by Associated Press

Since he took office, President Donald Trump has called for the dismantling of the Education Department, saying it has been overrun by liberal thinking. In July the U.S. Supreme Court upheld mass layoffs that halved the department’s staff.

Patty Garcia, 40, is likely to be the only Democrat on the March ballot, but could face a serious challenge during next November’s general election.

These two recent cases are bringing renewed attention to the treatment of Black pregnant women and igniting conversations around medical racism.

Texts from the Border Patrol agent who fired at Martinez revealed he apparently bragged about the shooting to others, stating in one message that he’d “fired 5 rounds and she had 7 holes. Put that in your book boys.”

Just 43 days after Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle introduced the spending plan that closed a $102.6 million gap in its general fund and a $108.8 million gap in its health fund, it sailed to final approval with little drama.

U.S. District Judge Jeffrey Cummings had ordered the release of as many as 615 people based on a 2022 consent decree outlining how U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement can make so-called warrantless arrests.

The change is the latest move by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to revisit — and foster uncertainty about — long-held scientific consensus about the safety of vaccines and other pharmaceutical products.

President Donald Trump seems to be scaling back his ambition to repeal and replace the law. But he is struggling to ease voters’ concerns over the high cost of living — combined with a looming deadline to extend expiring subsidies that help people pay for their “Obamacare” premiums.

Every Thursday, WTTW News newsletter producer Josh Terry highlights his picks for the week’s must-see cultural events.

An order restricting the use of force by immigration agents in Chicago is halted. And a pregnant woman is discharged from a hospital — giving birth in a car just eight minutes later.

Some homeowners are searching for answers as they grapple with hefty property tax bills. A new report from the Cook County Treasurer’s Office said declining values for downtown commercial properties are shifting the tax burden onto homeowners.

Officials announced Wednesday that $25 million in funding had been secured to demolish Ogden Park’s existing fieldhouse and replace it with a new building.

Mayor Brandon Johnson’s proposal to impose $623 million in new taxes on the wealthiest Chicagoans and largest firms remains in purgatory, with no clear path to a deal with just 41 days left before the deadline to avoid a shutdown of city government.

The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals has agreed to stay an order issued by U.S. District Judge Sara Ellis that sought to rein in agents’ use of tear gas, pepper balls and other crowd control measures against protesters, journalists and others.

Lawrence Reed, 50, was charged in a federal complaint Wednesday with a terrorist attack on a mass transportation system, two days after he allegedly doused a woman with gasoline and ignited a blaze on a CTA train.

The city and its lawyers will now have to convince a jury that four officers did nothing wrong when they fired 96 shots at Dexter Reed, hitting him 13 times, and fatally injuring him, records show

Sharing art, books and local beer, Gov. JB Pritzker on Wednesday called it an “honor” to meet with the pope in the Vatican to express “the pride and reverence of the people of this great state.”

Each Wednesday, WTTW News producer Josh Terry presents must-see live music shows from indie rock to jazz, country, hip-hop and more.

OnLight Aurora, a city-supported nonprofit, aims to provide high speed internet to the west suburban community’s institutions, businesses and residents. It’s also in massive debt, with a long history of questionable expenditures.

The Office of the Attorney General told U.S. District Court Judge Rebecca Pallmeyer that immediate steps must be taken to ensure the push to reform the Chicago Police Department results in meaningful change in the lives of ordinary Chicagoans.

Where budget negotiations stand at City Hall. And Illinois is rolling out mobile IDs — we explain how it works.

Alds. Daniel La Spata (1st Ward), William Hall (6th Ward) and Bill Conway (34th Ward) joined “Chicago Tonight” to discuss the ongoing budget negotiations. Here’s a snapshot of where they stand.

Staff at the elections board fined Don Harmon’s campaign $9.8 million earlier this year following a Chicago Tribune report that it improperly accepted $4 million more than was allowed during the 2024 election.

U.S. Sen. Tammy Duckworth has fired a staffer accused of misrepresenting himself as an attorney and falsifying an official form to visit and secure the release of a Staunton restaurant owner detained by immigration agents.

The decisive, bipartisan work in Congress Tuesday further showed the pressure mounting on lawmakers and the Trump administration to meet long-held demands that the Justice Department release its case files on Epstein.

A Democratic lawmaker from Washington defied her party by introducing a resolution on the House floor to rebuke Garcia, who represents parts of western Chicago and its suburbs.