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Carol Marin biography

Carol Marin is the political columnist for the Chicago Sun-Times.

In addition to her work at the paper, she is the political editor for NBC5 …

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So much for Rahm the Reformer

The Illinois Supreme Court handed a defeat to Chicago City Hall Inspector General Joe Ferguson this week. The decision casts in starkest terms a battle being waged between a mayor who defines himself as a reformer. And his IG. The Supremes declared that, given the …

Church needs talents of nuns

Sister Mercedes Moore is 98. Her eyes no longer see. But her mind is sharp. And her fingers fly as she crochets multi-colored afghans for anyone who might need or want one. For centuries, Sr. Mercedes and women like her have been the backbone of …

Game time for gay rights in Springfield

Let’s talk about same-sex marriage in sports terms. In Ernie Banks’ day, shortstops were known for their speed and defense. But Mr. Cub broke the mold. A power-hitting shortstop, in 1958 he hit 47 home runs. At the age of 82, he’s knocked it out …

  • My last dinner with Dawn Clark Netsch

    ‘When in doubt,” my mother always said, “bring food.” That’s what I did in early January, ringing the doorbell at the Chicago home of Dawn Clark Netsch, carrying homemade crab cakes, meatloaf and mashed potatoes. Dawn, at 86, only months earlier had been diagnosed with …Read More

  • GOP hands Illinois to Democrats

    Please, Illinois GOP, don’t shoot yourself in the foot — again. This state has a crying need for a formidable Republican Party. Without one, there’s no counterbalance to the unfettered power of Democratic leadership. No countervailing wind to trim the sails of Emperor of the …Read More

  • I’m going digital in new media world

    I imagine that when Michelle Obama’s hairdresser took scissors in hand last month and made that first cut, the First Lady flinched for a second. Change, even when it’s change you can believe in, is unsettling. But just days before her husband’s second inaugural, the …Read More

    • Will Cicero voters stand up to the bullies?

    There’s nothing funny about the bullies who run the town of Cicero. Especially not with an election less than a week away. Then again, the ham-handedness of town President Larry Dominick’s desperate attempts to hang on to his personal gravy train has provoked a laugh …

  • Obama should meet the ‘Warden’

    When President Obama hits town on Friday, he’ll be busy, I know. But if he has a few minutes to spare, there’s a man I wish he’d meet. Richard English is his name, though most people still call him “Warden.” “That’s the warden there . …Read More

  • CAROL MARIN: President needs to come home

    I wish the president was coming home. As important as it was for the White House to be represented at the Chicago funeral of 15-year-old Hadiya Pendleton, and as powerful a presence as the first lady is, it was the other Obama who needed to …Read More

  • A mom with gun grief wonders: ‘What did I not see?’

    My friend and former teaching colleague, Kay Burmeister, called in a fury. “Can you imagine asking, Carol, where is my .38 so I can get ready to teach?” she demanded. It was just days after the slaughter at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut. And …Read More

    • A smart decision in the Koschman case

    Dan Webb is a smart guy. And he and the Chicago law firm he chairs, Winston & Strawn, have just made a smart decision. They are no longer going to charge the taxpayers of Cook County — not even at the reduced rates they’ve been …

    Good old days are gone as George Ryan returns home

    In 1992, I was invited to a dinner with George Ryan, though Ryan had no idea I was going to be there. The dinner, a monthly ritual held at the old Como Inn in Chicago, had a name, according to former Ryan Chief of Staff …

    $10K contribution ethics violation?

    On Dec. 28, Michael Alvarez gave Rahm Emanuel a $10,000 campaign contribution. In the scheme of things, ten grand isn’t much money anymore in a bazillion-dollar Super Pac era. Still, it’s worth a conversation. Here’s why. Alvarez, a 32-year-old political up and comer, wears many …

    Corruption fighter calls it quits in a town not quite ready for reform

    David Grossman is hanging up his badge. He put his gun away a decade ago when he left a stellar career in the FBI to work for the city routing out corruption at a succession of agencies. But Grossman, 63, has one final shot to …

  • Jodie Foster could learn from Netsch

    Dawn Clark Netsch did something this week that Jodie Foster could learn from. The iconic Netsch, who has spent decades breaking glass ceilings in the world of politics and law, embraced the meaning of being a public figure at a time when no one would …Read More

  • BRADY MAY HELP KEEP GOP AFLOAT

    Jim Oberweis, the suburban dairy magnate and recently elected Illinois state senator, was rushing to an appointment when I called him Friday on his cellphone. Should Illinois Republican Party chairman Pat Brady, I asked, be fired for publicly announcing his personal support for legalizing gay …Read More

  • Political battle in Cicero

    The last time Burt Odelson and Mike Kasper squared off, Rahm Emanuel was on the witness stand and a titanic battle was under way. Odelson was doing his best to toss Emanuel off the 2011 Chicago mayoral ballot while Kasper was working hard to make …Read More

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