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Eric Anderson managed wildfire risks and restored habitat through controlled burns in the Indiana Dunes National Park, which relies on fire to thrive and sprawls close to urban residential areas.
Two weeks ago his role in that mission ended when he was fired alongside three others. They were among the 1,000 probationary park service staff members terminated as President Donald Trump’s administration freezes funding and slashes personnel across federal agencies.
The future of protected natural spaces and the ability of these places to provide recreation and education became more precarious Wednesday after Trump ordered federal agencies to come up with plans to reduce permanent staff members by March 13.
Read the full story from the Tribune’s Adriana Pérez.
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Mayor Brandon Johnson’s upcoming testimony before Congress will unfold in an arena of political risk — and theater
When Mayor Brandon Johnson lands in the nation’s capital this week to testify at a Republican-led hearing on sanctuary cities, he will be walking into one of the riskiest arenas of his political career.
On Wednesday, the U.S. House Oversight and Government Reform Committee will put Johnson and three other Democratic mayors in the hot seat, where GOP members will try to score political points off them over their respective laws blocking local police from assisting in immigration enforcement.
Gov. JB Pritzker and top Illinois Democrats appeal to public in fight against potential Medicaid cuts
Top Illinois Democrats led by Gov. JB Pritzker and U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin made an impassioned plea for the public to help fight potential cuts to Medicaid and other programs by President Donald Trump and Republicans who control Congress, acknowledging their party has little power to counter the GOP’s economic agenda.
“We’re facing a real challenge. Red alert, everybody,” Pritzker said during a news conference in the Illinois Medical District in Chicago’s Near West Side, where he was joined by Durbin and several members of Illinois’ congressional delegation. “I mean, it is time to wake up. Get out. Do something.”
Illinois hit by President Donald Trump’s cancellation of foreign aid contracts
Peter Goldsmith received official notice last week that the moment he hoped to avoid had…
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