So much for Ben & Dr. D to riff on--so little time. So let's get to it...Willlie Wilson gives away gas, as opposed to cash. That wins the Dr.'s vote. Reefer sales fall. Good news for cookie man. John Catanzara auditions for a mayoral run by trying to bully Alderman Nick Sposato. Chicago loves bullies so it might win Catanzara votes. MAGA must decide whether they'll sell out by going for the candidate with the big-bucks backers. And more...

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WBEZ reporter Dave McKinney returns to discuss two of the most powerful players in Illinois politics--Kenneth Griffin, who bankrolls the Republican Party, and Michael Joseph Madigan, who used to run the Democratic Party. They have more in common than you think, Dave breaks down his recent expose about Griffin's company's holdings in gun manufacture companies. And he talks about corruption indictment against Madigan.

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State Attorney Kim Foxx makes a tough decision. Ben riffs. Monroe Anderson talks Ukraine. And then...the great debate. As Adolfo Mondragon--lawyer extraordinaire--defends the sentencing of Jussie Smollett to 150 days in jail. Monroe & Ben take the other position. Look out, everybody...

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Mayor Lightfoot went on the Craig Dellimore Show, which is not really called the Craig Dellimore Show, and blamed everything on Ben. Well, not everything. But just the criticism Alderwoman Sue Sadlowski Garza aimed at Mayor Lightfoot. Ben riffs. And state Rep. Kam Buckner talks mayor's race. Will he run against Lightfoot? The Sun-Times positions him as a leading candidate. Also, Buckner talks about crime and Dems, CTU, and taking down that dastardly Trump sign. And other things...

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Alderwoman Sue Sadlowski Garza covers a range of topics. Including the tragic murder of Amanda Calo, shot dead by her husband. Katie Garza, the alderwoman's daughter, joins the conversation to pay tribute to Amanda and ask listeners donate to a GoFundMe page for Amanda's two children. Then the topic turns to politics. Asked if she's supporting Mayor Lightfoot's re-election, Alderwoman Garza says no. Then explains why she's breaking from her former ally.

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Roosevelt University Political Scientist David Faris takes us from A to Z on Putin's war against Ukraine. Putin's twisted logic, motivations and justifications--"it's not a violation of sovereignty, but a restoration of it." How best to confront him. The hypocrisy of Bush. The threat to the world. Would appeasement have worked? And more...

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Wednesday, July 10, 2019: An Alligator in the Humboldt Park Lagoon? Confederate Railroad banned from the Illinois State Fair. Legendary Chicago journalist Monroe Anderson returns. Activist Sameena Mustafa is back and Jacobin Writer Micah Uetricht talks local and national politics.

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Just after Judge James Linn sentenced Jussie Smollett to five months in the County Jail, Ben & Rummana sat down two discuss. And why not. We've been updating Smollettgate as it unfolded almost from the moment it began in January, 2019. Was the sentence fair? Should Smollett have received any jail time? Was this a reality show we were watching? Did Smollett use Kim Foxx? If Smollett is doing time for lying, why isn't Donald Trump in jail? And more...

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Dems want to pretend Michael Madigan never existed. Ben riffs. Alderman David Moore returns to discuss his candidacy to replace Jesse White as Secretary of State. He's the only candidate in the race who openly declares he's not using the office as a stepping stone to higher office. He lays out his agenda. And Peter "PC" Cunningham, the brains behind Daley, Duncan & Rahm returns to talk why Arne Duncan is not running for mayor. Why it's hard to have a legitimate conversation about crime. Police retirement. Defund police. And this observation--"Culture drives politics, politics drives policy."

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Jeff Jenkins is a juggler, activist, circus ring leader, and former aldermanic candidate--not necessarily in that order. He's also a passionate rescuer and trainer of dogs, particularly Pit bulls, who are bred to fight. He talks about saving and training "fight" dogs. There's much overlap between man's cruelty to dogs and his cruelty to other humans.

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