Hey there, it’s Wednesday! And my dog, Princess Leia, is recovering after getting stitches. Here’s what you need to know today. (PS: You can have this delivered to your inbox by subscribing here.)

1. Uncertainty over federal relief puts cash-strapped Chicago in a tough spot

President Donald Trump’s decision to halt negotiations over a broad coronavirus relief plan means Mayor Lori Lightfoot must now figure out how to close a $1.2 billion deficit without federal aid.

The mayor is eying up to $200 million in city worker cuts to help close the budget shortfall, reports the Chicago Tribune, citing unnamed sources who say the cuts could be a combination of furloughs and layoffs.

Lightfoot is expected to unveil her budget plan on Oct. 21. The mayor originally scheduled an Oct. 14 budget address, but she pushed it back in the hope that Congress and the White House would reach a deal on providing federal aid to states and local governments. (Trump is now pushing a much narrow response to the economic crisis. More on that in the next section.)

Lightfoot told the Trib that meetings with her financial team have been “painful.” While she declined to go into specifics, the mayor has not ruled out raising property taxes, a huge source of revenue for the city. [Chicago Tribune]

Even before the pandemic decimated the city’s budget, Chicago faced huge financial challenges. From a story I wrote after Lightfoot was elected mayor in 2019: “Lightfoot will confront a host of enormous problems that will require immediate attention and unpopular decisions. How she handles those problems could affect taxpayers’ wallets, the city’s reputation and her grip on political power.” [WBEZ]

Meanwhile, Chicago’s public schools also face financial uncertainty now that a broad federal relief package appears dead at the moment. School district officials balanced this year’s budget with the assumption it would receive $343 million in federal relief. [Chicago Sun-Times]

2. What is Trump’s strategy for the economy?

Just hours after calling off negotiations over a broad relief plan yesterday, President Trump is now pushing a piecemeal approach to providing pandemic aid. The president is urging Congress to approve stand-alone bills that would provide relief to airlines and small businesses, as well as another round of stimulus payments to Americans.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, one of the White House’s lead negotiators, talked this morning about airline relief. Pelosi told Mnuchin that Democrats had already thrown their support behind such a measure and Republicans blocked that bill on Friday, according to a spokesman for Pelosi.

Many economists agree that the U.S. economic recovery is in jeopardy. If Congress and the White House are unable to reach an agreement on federal aid, job losses could become permanent, small businesses may close for good and foreclosures and evictions could skyrocket, economists warn. [NPR]

Meanwhile, Trump’s physician, Dr. Sean Conley, today said the president has been symptom-free for over 24 hours, and that his oxygen saturation level and respiratory rate were normal. [AP]

3. What to watch in tonight’s debate between Pence and Harris

Vice President Mike Pence and Sen. Kamala Harris will debate tonight at 8 p.m. in Salt Lake City. WBEZ will air the debate live on 91.5 FM, and you can find live updates and fact-checks at WBEZ.org. The debate will be moderated by Susan Page, the Washington bureau chief for USA Today.

The candidates and the moderator will be divided by plexiglass, a setup that Pence’s team objected to.

NPR looks at what is at stake for Pence and Harris in tonight’s debate and how their performances could impact the presidential election. Can Pence help President Trump turn around his reelection campaign after last week’s widely panned presidential debate? Will Harris live up to the hype from progressives? And how will Trump’s health come up? [NPR]

4. Illinois sees spike in coronavirus cases

State officials today reported 2,630 new coronavirus cases, the most announced in a single day since the beginning of September. The state also reported 42 additional deaths.

Illinois is seeing a weekly average of 2,045 cases per day, according to The New York Times. That’s an increase of 9% compared to the average two weeks ago.

At the same time, Illinois has now performed more than 6 million coronavirus tests since the beginning of the pandemic. [WBEZ]

In Chicago, the number of new coronavirus cases is also rising. The city is seeing a weekly average of 337 cases per day, up 11% since the previous week. [COVID Dashboard]

The upticks come as health experts warn of a potential surge in cases this fall. [VOX]

Meanwhile, about half of Chicago households with children reported serious problems caring for their kids, according to a new poll from NPR, the Harvard T.H Chan School of Public Health and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. [WBEZ]

5. Special committee investigating ties between Madigan and ComEd won’t meet until after election

The integrity of a special committee probing ties between Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan and ComEd was further thrown into question this week.

The chairman of the special committee, state Rep. Emanuel “Chris” Welch, said he is postponing meetings until after the election because “we will not allow this committee to be used as a stage for political theater.”

Welch, a Democrat, accused Republicans on the committee of trying to score political points ahead of the Nov. 3 election. But Republican lawmakers say Democrats are trying to protect Madigan.

The special committee is investigating connections between Madigan and utility giant ComEd, which admitted in federal court that it gave jobs to close associates of Madigan as part of a bribery scheme to curry favor with him. Madigan has not been charged and denies any wrongdoing. [Chicago Sun-Times]

The special committee has been mired in partisan fights and questions about its independence. As WBEZ’s Dan Mihalopoulos reported last month, Madigan tried to get state jobs last year for a half-dozen people with close ties to Welch. [WBEZ]

Here’s what else is happening

• Hurricane Delta could hit the U.S. coast on Friday. [NPR]
• The former Minneapolis police officer charged with murder in the death of George Floyd was released from prison after posting bail. [AP]
• The Justice Department charged two British members of ISIS for their alleged roles in kidnapping and killing American hostages. [Politico]
• A New York hospital executive has been tapped to lead Cook County’s public health system. [WBEZ]

Oh, and one more thing …

I read so much news, I could probably become a life coaching business called “Hunter Clauss Life Hacks.” Here’s a freebie lesson: If you want to quickly start a fight at a party, just ask, “Who has the best pizza in Chicago?”

The Chicago Tribune has this list of the “25 best pizzas in Chicago,” and I can literally hear someone raging and choking on a slice of deep dish as I type out this sentence.

I’m giving up pizza because I feel like I’m turning into Baron Harkonnen from Dune, but all of these pictures of pizza are making me so hungry. [Chicago Tribune]

Tell me something good …

The weather this week looks like it will be amazing. Are you planning anything fun before we say goodbye to the sun for what feels like six months?

Jordan Wakefield writes:

“This weekend my husband and I are going to enjoy the last spurt of nice weather by going hiking and camping to celebrate our first wedding anniversary. We are sincerely hoping that the rest of our marriage is pandemic-free. As a side note: On our wedding day my husband and his groomsmen played the board game Pandemic before getting ready. Feels a bit eerie to look back at that now …”

And Ellen B. writes:

“This weekend I’m going to have an in-person visit with my dad. I last saw him at Christmas. He lives in assisted living and has been in quarantine since March. We’ve missed Easter, his birthday and Father’s Day. FINALLY I will be able to see him for 30 masked and socially distant minutes.”

Got any fun plans this week? Feel free to email at therundown@wbez.org or tweet to @whuntah.

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