Gov. JB Pritzker was ecstatic when he announced that a Canadian electric bus company named Lion Electric would open. They planned to produce 10,000 buses a year.
However, the company just suspended operations at the Lion Electric Joliet plant and laid off more than half of its workforce.
Will Pritzker tell how much money was subsidized by Illinois taxpayers? And how many buses have actually been built so far? And what type of tax breaks were given to this company?
Unfortunately, these green energy deals always end up failing. It’s happening right now with Rivian, the electric car company. They are basically bankrupt. And just like the tens of thousands of electric car charging stations promised by “Mayor Pete” (Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg), there is little to show for it.
Mike Daly, Grayslake
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Honor will of people who want ranked-choice voting
I sure don’t want the Cook County clerk overseeing my vote. The clerk has expressed disdain for Evanston’s overwhelming preference for ranked-choice voting. Will the clerk now do the same to Oak Park?
In 2022 Evanston voters used the city’s home-rule authority and voted overwhelmingly to adopt ranked-choice voting for its municipal elections beginning in 2025. After the election, the Cook County clerk, which oversees Evanston’s elections, never said much as observers watched its inaction.
In the end, a court suit was needed to figure out what was going on. The suit flushed out a bunch of flimsy legal excuses for not implementing the people’s will.
Instead of cooperating with Evanston to figure out how to make ranked-choice voting work, the clerk’s office continues to fight against ranked-choice voting. Now that Oak Park has also used the same home-rule authority to vote in ranked-choice voting, will the clerk wake up? The people want ranked-choice voting, and it’s time to be helpful. Shame on the Cook County clerk.
When Chicago votes for ranked-choice voting, I want an election authority that backs the people. It’s too soon to consider combining election authorities.
Abigail Nichols, Streeterville
Pardon Cheney, Kinzinger and others who crossed Trump
I read all the controversy over President Joe Biden pardoning his son. I just shake my head.
Yes, he said many times that he would not pardon his son. I always thought he should say, “Hell, yes, I’m going to pardon him fully and unconditionally.”
Now, I want him to really rile up Donald Trump and his MAGA followers. I want him to fully and unconditionally pardon every member of Congress who handled both impeachments, including Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger. I want the same pardons for Mike Pence, Michael Cohen and any others I’m unintentionally omitting.
I also want the same pardons for all journalists, comedians, entertainers and talk-show hosts he has targeted.
He should also pardon himself. This way the circus that is coming to the White House and Department of Justice will not be able to seek revenge against any of those law-abiding Americans.
Trump has said he will pardon the traitors and insurgents from Jan. 6 so he needs to be quiet about any of President Biden’s pardons.
Margaret Hall, Aurora
Hunter Biden needed protection from Trump
I’m writing in response to a letter to the editor from Janice Montgomery regarding Joe Biden’s pardon of his son, Hunter (“Shame on Biden”). At the end of her letter, Montgomery says, “Any wonder why so many voted Republican in the last election? People are tired of the lies.”
Seriously? More than 76 million Americans just elected a convicted felon, adjudicated rapist, pathological liar, serial adulterer and grifter to be president.
If Donald Trump’s mouth is moving, he’s lying. I would direct Montgomery to the rogue’s gallery of tax evaders, liars, conspirators, etc. pardoned by Donald Trump. He’s even chosen one to be ambassador to France.
So spare me all the pearl-clutching. Considering the wholly unqualified people and conspiracy theorists Trump plans to put in charge of our justice system, Biden was right to get his son out of their line of sight. The shame isn’t on Joe Biden but those who voted for Donald Trump.
Susan Lovell, DeKalb
Oligarchs run U.S.
In 2015, in response to a question about the Supreme Court ruling allowing unlimited money in politics, former President Jimmy Carter said the U.S. was now an “oligarchy” with “unlimited political bribery.” In the past nine years, the U.S. has become even less of a democracy and more of an oligarchy.
Billionaires own most of the major newspapers, TV and radio stations, and social media platforms, thereby controlling information. Billionaires helped fund Donald Trump’s campaign, with the world’s richest oligarch even running the campaign’s ground operation. In return, he expects huge benefits for his corporations and plans to be in charge of determining how the federal budget is spent.
Oligarchies frequently become dictatorships and Trump has said he will be a dictator on Day 1.
John Regan, Lemont
Workforce reduction by attrition
In my opinion, the best and most humane way to reduce federal government costs is not to replace workers who retire. This also works at every government level and in private industry.
Joe Miller, Orland Park