New charges of patronage, no-bid contracts and strong-arming by Illinois House Speaker Mike Madigan come to light as ousted Metra CEO Alex Clifford speaks out for the first time. Clifford told the RTA Wednesday that Madigan's requests reflected a "moral and ethical character flaw." Paris Schutz has the details.

Kankakee’s Mayor strongly denies that her city is taking sales tax revenues that belong in Cook County. Elizabeth Brackett has the story.

Are some airlines skirting the city sales tax? We look into that issue, plus the City of Chicago's tax lawsuit against some nearby counties.