Gov. JB Pritzker signed Illinois’ assault weapons ban into law hours after it was passed by the General Assembly in January. [Ben Szalinski/The Daily Line] 

After months of litigations at various levels of the legal system, Illinois’ assault weapons ban received its most intense review under the Second Amendment yet when six consolidated cases were heard Thursday by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit in Chicago.  

Gov. JB Pritzker introduces President Joe Biden at a speech at the Old Post Office in Chicago on Wednesday. [Ben Szalinski/The Daily Line] 

President Joe Biden visited Chicago Wednesday to get a political boost from Gov. JB Pritzker and other Illinois Democrats on both the president’s economic agenda and Biden’s hopes for a second term in the White House.  

Former U.S. Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood speaks at a news conference at Union Station in Chicago on Monday. [Blue Room Stream]   

Amtrak trains began running at 110 m.p.h. between Chicago and St. Louis on Monday, cutting down travel times between Illinois cities and representing the latest step by the state to improve passenger rail service.  

Gov. JB Pritzker speaks at a news conference at Union Station in Chicago on Monday. [Blue Room Stream] 

A week after his administration announced changes to a healthcare program for undocumented immigrants, Gov. JB Pritzker responded to criticism from members of his own party who have asked the governor to reconsider the changes.  

Senate President Don Harmon (D-Oak Park), right, presents a bill in a Senate committee in May. [Attorney General’s Office]   

Illinois’ longest-tenured legislative leader at four years, Senate President Don Harmon (D-Oak Park), likes the direction his Democratic caucus is trending:   

“I’ve joked how hard I’ve worked to make Springfield boring again,” Harmon told The Daily Line. “We’ve had enough headlines or focusing on the difficult task of governing, of passing responsible balanced budgets, of making sure the law works for people in Illinois.” 

Gov. JB Pritzker makes a campaign stop at Planned Parenthood’s Chicago office in August 2022. [Ben Szalinski/The Daily Line]   

When the U.S. Supreme Court dropped the expected end of Roe v. Wade on June 24, 2022 in the Dobbs v. Jackson ruling, it was a call to action for Illinois Democrats who spent the next year crafting and passing bills to protect and expand access to abortion in Illinois.  

Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias speaks at a news conference Wednesday at the National Museum of Mexican Art in Chicago’s Pilsen neighborhood. [Blue Room Stream] 

Undocumented immigrants living in Illinois may soon have nearly the same driver’s licenses as everyone else under a bill on Gov. JB Pritzker’s desk.  

Gov. JB Pritzker signs the Fiscal Year 2024 budget into law earlier this month. [Ben Szalinski/The Daily Line]

New rules to rein in costs for a healthcare program for undocumented residents is generating backlash from advocates and Latino lawmakers who fear the new rules will leave many Illinois residents without healthcare.  

Police process the crime scene on July 5, 2022 following a shooting at Highland Park’s Independence Day parade. [Ben Szalinski/The Daily Line] 

On July 4 last year, a gunman opened fire on parade goers in Highland Park from the anonymous cover of a rooftop, killing seven people and wounding 48 others. It would be hours before the suspect was caught driving around Lake County. 

Under a new law that took effect Friday following Gov. JB Pritzker’s signature, Illinois police will have new abilities to get a bird’s eye view of special events like parades that supporters hope could allow police to catch a mass shooter before a shot is fired.  

Illinois Capitol

Gov. JB Pritzker has signed 100 bills passed during the spring session into law this year. The bills range from establishing temperature limits for utility shutoffs to new protections for union members on the picket line to a task force to revitalize Illinois’ history with the Underground Railroad.