Good afternoon! Why do presidents only have one or two dogs? If I were the leader of the free world, I’d have at least two dozen dogs. Who’s going to stop me? Congress? Anyway, here’s what you need to know today.

1. Will votes for the Bring Chicago Home referendum be counted?

The Chicago Board of Elections is expected to decide tomorrow if it will appeal a judge’s ruling that invalidated a referendum asking voters to hike a tax on the sale of high-end properties to help fund services for the homeless.

The question will still appear on city ballots in the March 19 primary, but a Cook County judge ordered the Board of Elections to not count votes on the referendum.

Opponents of the ballot question said it was illegal because it combined what some may see as a politically unpopular proposal with a popular one — in this case a tax hike and a tax cut.

The Bring Chicago Home measure would increase the real estate transfer tax on properties worth more than $1 million while cutting the same tax on properties worth less.

Mayor Brandon Johnson’s administration, which argues the city needs a dedicated revenue stream to address a rise in homelessness, has also asked to temporarily suspend the judge’s ruling as the city prepares an appeal. [ABC7]

2. Pritzker says he’s ‘reluctant’ to help subsidize a new White Sox stadium in the South Loop

Gov. JB Pritzker today threw cold water on the idea of forking over taxpayer money to help build a $1.2 billion ballpark, saying the idea isn’t high on his list of priorities, my colleague Tina Sfondeles reports.

“I start out really reluctant … unless a case is made that the investment yields a long-term return for the taxpayers that we can justify in some way,” Pritzker said. “I haven’t seen that yet.”

The governor has not been a fan of public subsidies for stadiums, for both the Bears and the White Sox.

But he and his team have yet to meet with proposed developers Related Midwest, or Sox owner Jerry Reinsdorf. Reinsdorf met with legislative leaders in separate Illinois State Capitol meetings last week. [Chicago Sun-Times]

3. Climate change takes the punch out of winter in Chicago

The weather forecast tomorrow includes a high around 70 degrees, something I didn’t think was possible in February.

While all four seasons have become warmer due to climate change, the temperatures in winter have climbed at a much faster rate, the Chicago Tribune reports.

“Winter warming is probably the most substantial trend that we can see over the last 100 years as far as how our climate has changed, and is also strongly tied to sort of the global warming forcing,” state climatologist Trent Ford told the newspaper.

The warmer weather might be a welcomed change of pace for some Chicago-area residents, but scientists are concerned about the ecological impact, like the spread of non-native species. [Chicago Tribune]

4. Some public schools make house calls to prove students live in Chicago

Chicago school officials defend the move as a way to weed out parents falsely claiming to live within a school’s boundaries.

But parents described the home inspection process as intrusive, my colleague Courtney Kueppers reports. And the policy is inconsistently applied.

“I thought it was a violation of my rights,” said LaKeisha Crutcher, who lives just three blocks from Kenwood Academy High School.

When she enrolled her son at the school, Crutcher said two men from Kenwood showed up at her apartment. One of the men stepped inside her front door, saw family photos on the walls and decided he had seen enough to confirm their residency. [WBEZ]

5. A Chicagoan killed while fighting for Ukraine is remembered as a hero

On the second anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, friends and family members gathered over the weekend to remember Myhailo Yavorskyi, who was known as “Chicago” to his comrades, my colleague Michael Loria reports.

Yavorskyi died fighting Russia in May 2023, just before Ukraine launched a massive counteroffensive.

As the war heads into a third year and hope becomes hard to hold onto, family and friends wonder what his sacrifice will mean.

“That’s the saddest part,” said Zoryana Yavorski, his younger sister. (They spell their name differently in English.) “It was hard enough to lose him, but to think it might have been done in vain and the dream of what he died for is not going to happen — that’s another heartbreak.” [Chicago Sun-Times]

Here’s what else is happening

• President Joe Biden will visit the southern border on the same day as former President Donald Trump. [AP]

• The U.S. Supreme Court today heard arguments in two cases that could have a profound impact on social media companies. [NPR]

• Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny was about to be freed in a prisoner swap when he died, an ally said. [BBC]

• Leap day is coming up. Here’s why it’s a thing every four years. [NPR]

Oh, and one more thing …

We’re getting close to one of my favorite games of the year: predicting who’s going to win at the Oscars on March 10.

And the odds on favorite for best picture is Oppenheimer, writes Sun-Times entertainment columnist Richard Roeper, who expects the film to pick up at least five other awards.

Roeper also predicts Lily Gladstone will win the best actress award for her performance in Killers of the Flower Moon.

But more surprisingly, Roeper believes Paul Giamatti will win best actor for The Holdovers over Cillian Murphy in Oppenheimer. You can read more in the link. [Chicago Sun-Times]

Roeper will also be taking questions about the Oscars for a live discussion on March 8. [Chicago Sun-Times]

Tell me something good …

I’ll be honest: This amazing weather does not make me want to go to work. Do you have a fond memory of playing hooky or calling in “sick” to get a day off from work or school?

I’ll never forget successfully faking the flu in middle school and then spending the entire day playing GoldenEye 007 on the Nintendo 64. And I somehow beat the game in just one day.

Feel free to email me, and your responses might be shared in the newsletter this week. Don’t worry, I’ll only use first names for this one.