The Mincing Rascals this week are John Williams of WGN Radio, Eric Zorn, Publisher of The Picayune Sentinel, Cate Plys, former staff writer at the Chicago Reader, and political op-ed columnist at the Sun-Times and Tribune, and political pundit Marj Halperin! This week the Rascals kick off the podcast talking about the upcoming debate between President Biden and Donald Trump. Are the Rascals looking forward to watching? What are the Rascals most interested in seeing from the candidates? This week former Alderman Ed Burke was sentenced to two years in prison plus a $2M fine. Do the Rascals believe justice was served? A Supreme Court ruling today will narrow the scope of corruption laws targeting public officials. What do the Rascals make of this SCOTUS decision? And finally, Chicago Alderman William Hall asked aldermen to log their yes/no support for 16 different tax hike proposals in a “Revenue Survey” distributed to city council members. The survey briefly had an open link that anyone could access. Where do the Rascals stand on the various tax hike proposals?

The Mincing Rascals this week are John Williams of WGN Radio, Brandon Pope, host of ‘On the Block‘ on WCIU, Cate Plys, former staff writer at the Chicago Reader, and political op-ed columnist at the Sun-Times and Tribune, Austin Berg of the Illinois Policy Institute, and political pundit Marj Halperin! This week the Rascals start the podcast by discussing Mayor Johnson launching a task force looking into a reparations program. Where are the Rascals on reparations? The Chicago Teachers Union and Chicago Public Schools held their first-ever public bargaining session last week. Austin watched the session and gives us the major takeaways. The Rascals also get into it about corporate profits and ‘greedflation.’ Controversy continues to follow the Chicago Sky after their game last weekend against Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever. John thinks the Sky are playing like the old Detroit Pistons ‘Bad Boys.’ The Supreme Court struck down a Trump-era ban on rapid-fire rifle bump stocks. What do the Rascals make of the ruling? And finally, the Rascals discuss the impact of President Biden issuing a new policy granting legal protections to undocumented spouses and children of American citizens.

This week’s Mincing Rascals was recorded in front of a live audience at Winter’s Jazz Club on Wednesday, June, 12, 2024. The Mincing Rascals for this special live show are John Williams of WGN Radio, Eric Zorn, Publisher of The Picayune Sentinel, Jon Hansen of WGN Radio and Block Club Chicago, Brandon Pope, host of ‘On the Block‘ on WCIU, Cate Plys, former staff writer at the Chicago Reader, and political op-ed columnist at the Sun-Times and Tribune, Austin Berg of the Illinois Policy Institute, and political pundit Marj Halperin! The Rascals take on a number of topics including if former Alderman Ed Burke should serve prison time, why some alderman want an 8 pm curfew for downtown Chicago, how everyone feels about the Donald Trump and Hunter Biden verdicts, the Supreme Court audio and the journalistic ethics of secretly recording interviews, if Caitlin Clark deserves to be on the Olympic team, and why some are hoping the White Sox break the record for futility. Did you miss out on attending the event? That’s okay, because we have all the photos here!

The Mincing Rascals this week are Jon Hansen of WGN Radio and Block Club Chicago, Cate Plys, former staff writer at the Chicago Reader, and political op-ed columnist at the Sun-Times and Tribune, Austin Berg of the Illinois Policy Institute, Brandon Pope, host of ‘On the Block‘ on WCIU, and political pundit Marj Halperin. This week, the Rascals start things off by discussing Chicago’s preparedness for the upcoming Democratic National Convention. Do the Rascals trust that the city and CPD will be ready to handle the DNC? On to the WNBA! Next, the Rascals discuss the Chicago Sky and the controversy surrounding their game against Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever. What did the Rascals think about the Caitlin Clark-Chennedy Carter incident and the media / online reaction? Cate thinks that Caitlin Clark definitely flopped and needs to toughen up! This week, the Chicago City Council scrutinized Mayor Brandon Johnson’s plan to quickly budget federal COVID-19 relief dollars before the end-of-year deadline. How much do the Rascals care if the city rushes to spend COVID money? What to do the Rascals think of Chicago’s Plow the Sidewalks pilot program? Should the city spend money on plowing sidewalks for its residents? And finally, let’s give the Rascals 1-minute each to talk about former president Donald Trump being found guilty of 34 counts of falsifying business records. Talk to you next week from Winter’s Jazz Club!

The Mincing Rascals this week are Jon Hansen of WGN Radio and Block Club Chicago, Eric Zorn, Publisher of The Picayune Sentinel, Cate Plys, former staff writer at the Chicago Reader and political op-ed columnist at the Sun-Times and Tribune, and political pundit Marj Halperin. This week the Rascals talk about the upcoming DNC in Chicago and the plan to virtually nominate President Biden and Vice President Harris before the scheduled DNC. Does this decision take any juice away from the DNC? The Illinois House passed a $53.1 billion state budget early Wednesday morning. Why do lawmakers have to wait until the last minute and then hold a vote in the middle of the night? Is this what an open government should look like? Senate President Don Harmon didn’t put a measure to extend a moratorium on public school closings in Chicago to a vote because he accepted Mayor Brandon Johnson’s promise not to shut down any schools or deplete funding for selective enrollment schools. Was this a win for Mayor Johnson? The Madison County (Illinois) Board will place a symbolic advisory referendum on the November ballot that will ask voters if they should explore separating from the Chicago area. What do the Rascals make of this effort? The Washington Post dug into some data about America’s best decade. When do the Rascals think the nation peaked? And does it follow the data? And what decade delivered the best music? The gang debates!

The Mincing Rascals this week are John Williams of WGN Radio, Eric Zorn, Publisher of The Picayune Sentinel, Austin Berg of the Illinois Policy Institute, Brandon Pope, host of ‘On the Block‘ on WCIU, and Cate Plys, former staff writer at the Chicago Reader and political op-ed columnist at the Sun-Times and Tribune. The Rascals kick things off talking about OpenAI being accused of copying Scarlett Johansson’s voice, and the upcoming conventions in Milwaukee and Chicago. Eric wonders if political conventions are necessary anymore. Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx hopes to adopt a new policy that wouldn’t prosecute gun cases that are tied to some minor traffic stops. Do the Rascals think this is a good idea? Chicago alders are currently debating the future of ShotSpotter in the city. What do the Rascals think of the technology and the debate going on in City Council? A man who was driving over 120 mph was charged with three felonies for a crash that killed a Glenview teenager over the weekend. Is it time to put up more speed cameras? Will that deter people from driving recklessly? An upside-down American flag, a symbol of the ‘Stop the Steal’ movement, was flown outside Supreme Court Justice Sam Alito’s home. Should Justice Alito recuse himself from January 6 cases?

The Mincing Rascals this week are Jon Hansen of WGN Radio and Block Club Chicago, Eric Zorn, Publisher of The Picayune Sentinel, Cate Plys, former staff writer at the Chicago Reader and political op-ed columnist at the Sun-Times and Tribune, and political pundit Marj Halperin. This week, the Rascals talk about the 1-year anniversary of the inauguration of Mayor Brandon Johnson. What letter grade would each of the Rascals give Mayor Johnson on his first year? And what do you think we’ll be talking about the most during the mayor’s next term? The DNC? CTU-CPS negotiations? Migrants? Crime? Today was a CPS ‘day of action’ as some teachers went down to Springfield to lobby for more school funding. Do the Rascals think this was a good idea? The Museum Of Science And Industry is being renamed the Griffin Museum of Science and Industry, thanks to a $125 million donation from Florida billionaire Ken Griffin. Do the Rascals care about the museum being renamed? Will the Rascals be using the new name? And finally, Donald Trump and President Biden agreed to two debates that will take place in June and September. Who will the debates benefit most? And should RFK, Jr. be allowed to debate?

The Mincing Rascals this week are John Williams of WGN Radio, Eric Zorn, Publisher of The Picayune Sentinel, Austin Berg of the Illinois Policy Institute, and Cate Plys, former staff writer at the Chicago Reader and political op-ed columnist at the Sun-Times and Tribune. The Rascals kick things off this week talking about the pro-Palestinian protests happening on college campuses around the country. How do the Rascals think the protests were handled? Do the current protests concern the Rascals about the upcoming DNC? Mayor Brandon Johnson is in Springfield today to meet with lawmakers about funding for CPS. How much money is CTU really looking for? South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem is continuing to make news after claiming in her new book that she met North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. Does Governor Noem have any chance to be Donald Trump’s running mate? The city of Chicago is considering lowering the city’s speed limit on arterial streets from 30 mph to 25 mph. Do the Rascals think the speed limit should be lowered? The city wants to establish a ‘quiet zone’ around an abortion clinic in the West Loop. Is this an attack on free speech? And finally, the legendary musician and engineer Steve Albini passed away today at the age of 61. Cate shares her memories of going to school with Albini and what he meant to the music scene.

The Mincing Rascals this week are John Williams of WGN Radio, Eric Zorn, Publisher of The Picayune Sentinel, Cate Plys, former staff writer at the Chicago Reader and political op-ed columnist at the Sun-Times and Tribune, and political pundit Marj Halperin. The Rascals start today’s podcast talking about the pro-Palestinian protests that are happening on college campuses around the country. What do the Rascals make of the protests, and the impact they might have on the 2024 election? Marj wrote an Op-ed in the Tribune about the new Bears stadium proposal. The Rascals break down what else we need to know about the proposal. Also, what are the Rascals thoughts on Mayor Brandon Johnson being told to stay away from the funeral of slain CPD officer Luis Huesca? The Pritzker administration will expand coverage of weight-loss drugs for state government workers. Do the Rascals believe this is a good investment? South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem revealed that she killed her dog because it was behaving poorly during a hunting expedition. Do the Rascals believe this will end her political career? And finally, what’s the latest on the Trump trial?

Join John Williams and the cast of The Mincing Rascals at Winter’s Jazz Club (465 N. McClurg Ct.) on Wednesday, June 12 for a live taping of the podcast – plus Robert’s Pizza and jazz guitarist Andy Brown. Tickets are $42.75, inclusive of all fees.

Doors to Winter’s Jazz Club open at 5pm for happy hour in the lounge with 25% off all drinks. The podcast taping starts at 6pm. Around 7pm until 8pm, the audience will gather back in the lounge for a slice of Robert’s Pizza and live music from jazz guitarist Andy Brown.

See the award-winning panel do their thing live – which is a witty, snappy, smart conversation filled with insight and humor about the day’s major news. The episode will be taped for playback on WGN Radio. Get tickets here. (A drink minimum purchase of $10 per person applies to all shows at Winter’s Jazz Club.)

John Williams is heard weekdays on WGN Radio from 10am to 2pm, including the Wintrust Business Lunch at noon. His “Mincing Rascals” podcast, featuring John and a roundtable of Chicago journalists discussing the big news stories of the day, is available at wgnradio.com, wherever podcasts are found and also airs most Saturday nights from 8-9pm.

Eric Zorn was long-time op-ed columnist for the Chicago Tribune who specialized in local news and politics, but also wrote widely about sports, arts and culture. After 41 years at the paper, he left in June 2021 and now writes The Picayune Sentinel, a Substack with nearly 12,000 subscribers. He and his wife, audio news and documentary editor Johanna Zorn, live on the city’s northwest side and have three adult children. On the side, he’s an old-time dance fiddler.

Jon Hansen is an Emmy-winning TV, radio and podcast host for WCIU-TV, WGN Radio, and Block Club Chicago. He is also the in-arena host for the Chicago Blackhawks at the United Center.

Austin Berg is the vice president of marketing at the Illinois Policy Institute and co-founder of Iron Light, an agency helping purpose-driven brands change the world. He is the co-author of the book The New Chicago Way: Lessons from Other Big Cities.

Brandon Pope is an award-winning and Emmy-nominated journalist, host, podcaster, media critic and columnist, with experience covering a range of topics from politics to sports. Brandon is currently the host of ‘On The Block: Powered by Block Club Chicago’ on CW26, and the MAKING podcast series from WBEZ and NPR. He is president of the Chicago chapter of the National Association of Black Journalists, where he focuses on shepherding the next generation of of journalists and raising money for scholarships. Brandon is also an adjunct professor at Columbia College Chicago.

Cate Plys is a former reporter and columnist for the Reader, Sun-Times and Tribune, focusing on city politics and after that just about anything. She covered City Council for ten years. Proudest moment: When Ald. Ed Burke requested the original drawing from one of her column’s cartoon illustrations, which depicted him in bed with Jesse Jackson Jr. Cate now writes the Chicago history website Roseland, Chicago:1972 on Substack. City affiliation: South Side. Go Sox! 

Marj Halperin has decades of experience as an award-winning journalist, government reformer, campaign strategist, community activist, and PR consultant. Marj’s commentary has been featured on Canada’s national CTV network, Fox News Channel, Los Angeles Public Radio, progressive talk radio WCPT, and WGN-TV Morning News, where she served as a Democratic analyst for more than 10 years. An all-around expert at challenging authority, Marj leads the fledgling One Community Near South to give neighbors a stronger voice amid rapid development that often ignores the views and needs of residents.

A New York native, Andy Brown is a guitarist based in Chicago who has been playing professionally for more than 25 years. Andy has worked at many of the area’s finest jazz venues with his own bands, as well as playing his unique brand of solo jazz guitar. He performs with his trio bi-weekly at Winter’s Jazz Club. His love of great tunes, as well as accompanying skills have made him a favorite with vocalists. In 2009, he had the good fortune to accompany Barbra Streisand when she appeared on the Oprah Winfrey Show. Andy has made many festival and club appearances around the world and been featured on a wide array of recordings.