Ray Hanania on Politics, Media & Life

04-06-25 Tom Tresser discusses the impact of TIFs in Orland Park and Aurora

04-06-25 Tom Tresser discusses the impact of TIFs in Orland Park and AuroraRay Hanania on Politics Podcast S8 Ep 4 04-06-25  Sunday April 6, 2025 and I am talking with Tom Tresser anexpert on TIFs, Tax Increment Financing Districts … and the impact TIFs had in the outcomes of two major suburban elections, the defeat of Orland Park Mayor Keith Pekau by Jim Dodge and the defeat of Aurora Mayor Richard Irvin by Alderman John Laesch … Pekau and Irvin were abusers of TIFs and the issue surfacedduring both elections to impact the outcomes Award winning Chicagoland political writer and formerChicago City Hall reporter and columnist addresses the facts that drive regional politics and elections in Chicagoland and the United States in this mainstream podcast, “Ray Hanania on Politics.” For more information on Ray Hanania and his podcast, RayHanania on Politics, visit www.Hanania.com… watch the video at Youtube.com/@rayhananiaor go to the audio podcast at www.RayHananiaOnPolitics.com

03-30-25 Billy Marovitz Video Podcast Interview

03 30 25 Billy Marovitz Video Podcast InterviewS8 Ep 3Ray Hanania on Politics Video Podcast March 30, 2025One of the elected officials I most admire is Billy Marovitz, who I first met when I was covering Chicago City Hall and have since maintained a friendship with him, seeing the vastness of all the things he has done.Marovitz is a guy who can’t sit still and has done many great things.He is a former Illinois legislator, who served in the Illinois House in 1974 and then went on to the Illinois Senate in 1980. He was only 25 when he entered politics, with no political allies, PACs or politicians behind his campaign. He rose to political influence serving as Vice Chairman of the Democratic Party for 25 years. As a legislator, Marovitz introduced and passed the Illinois Generic Prescription Drug Act which forced Big Pharma to sell Generic Drugs at a discount of 50 to 60 percent of their prescription costs, introduced the wrote and Hate Crimes Law, produced a musical celebrating the Cubs 2016 World Series victory, opened the Latin-Fusion restaurants Carnivale in Chicago and in Paradise Island, Bahamas, and hosts and interviews celebrity authors including New York Times Pulitzer Prize Columnist Maureen Dowd.Here is an interview I did with Marovitz, a true public servant with one of the most positive attitudes in American politics, that I think you will enjoy.For more information on my columns and the column I wrote on the interview, visit hanania.com.

03-09-25 Ray Hanania in elections in CIcero, Orland Park, Orland Fire

03 09 25 Hanania in Cicero Orland Park Fire District electionsS8 E2Veteran award winning political columnist and former Chicago City Hall reporter Ray Hanania talks about the top election aces this season in Chicagoland.Hanania discusses the achievements of Cicero Town President Larry Dominick, who he does media work for, and all of Dominick's achievements. Dominick is celebrating his 20th year in office and in the Feb. 25, 2025 election, Dominick won re-election in a landslide, achieving the same percentage win that he did in his last contested election in 2013. (Cicero has seen a drop in voter turnout of 1,900 voters, which accounts for a slight reduction in percentage win but still an amazing victory for a mayor who has done so much to strengthen and change the image of the Town of Cicero.The Cicero race is decisive and final and does not have an election on April 1. President Dominick will be sworn in to a 6th term as Town President in May 2025.Hanania also talks about the big race taking place in the April 1, 2025 General election that is in Orland Park, the largest city between Chicago and Joliet in the Southwest Suburbs. Incumbent Mayor Keith Pekau is going to lose to former Trustee Jim Dodge mainly because people are tired of Pekau's outrageous bullying and name-calling. Pekau doesn't tolerate public questions, has the worst transparency in the state for a municipal leader, and truly hates the people who question his consolidation of power in Orland Park over the past 8 years he has been in office, 6 of which he controlled the rubber stamp board.Pekau and other surrounding mayors and supervisors all want to grab, merge, and consolidate the Orland Fire Protection District, which is the jewel in the crown of national firefighters. The OFPD has a fully funded pension that Pekau is drooling to control. Neighboring villages want to control the fire district, too, to shore up their limited fire department performances.The OFPD has a 71 percent Cardiac Arrest Save Rate, one of the highest in the Midwest if not the highest in the nation. The national Save rate is only 10 to 15 percent. That means if you live in the OFPD (which includes Orland Park, Orland Hills and some unincorporated areas) you have a 5 Times better chance of surviving a heart attack.There are three slates of 3 candidates running to control the OFPD. One is backed by Pekau. Losers. Another is backed by a local supervisor and funded by donations from surrounding mayors who want to merge and consolidate -- they say they don't publicly but privately consolidation would be a financial windfall for them.I am supporting the Fiscal Voices for Orland Fire slate of candidates that include the only candidates with First Responder, police or fire experience:OFPD Trustee Beth Damas KasparOFPD Trustee Donald "DJ" JeffersFormer Palos Heights CSO Bridget TolanTheir website ishttps://FiscalVoicesforOrlandFire.comand their Facebook Page is https://Facebook.com/people/Fiscal-Voices-For-Fire-Safety-Orland-Fire/61572978827101/Check them out. If you live in the OFPD District support them to protect the Fire District from mergers and consolidation.Get more information on all of this at my columns website athttps://Hanania.comThank youRAY HANANIA

03-06-25 Hanania on Politics: Trump & Ukraine; the biggest race in Chicago suburbs

03-06-25 Ray Hanania on Politics: Trump & Ukraine; the biggest race in Chicago suburbsSeason 8, Episode 1Podcast Topics:I am reviving the podcast starting today. It will be recorded in audio here at Spotify and in video on YouTube, several times each week. And, I will write about it on my syndicated column page at www.HANANIA.comYou can easily subscribe to the syndicated columns and not miss an episode, column, or topics from Mainstream to Middle East.What is President Donald Trump doing? Trump stabbed Ukraine in the back claiming it was about money, but is it about the taxpayer money or his money? Trump is sucking up to Communist tyrant Vladimir Putin, his pal, because Trump wants to build those skyscrapers in Moscow and St. Petersburg like he has been trying to do for the past four decades.Trump's policies in the Middle East are pushing our allies away from us and we'll have major consequences down the road as a result. Hamas is a Terrorist organization but so is the current Government of Israel. They both have killed innocent people. Hamas killed 1,400 Israel has killed 58,000 and the casualties continue to grow. Most are women and children. Babies are being murdered by American funding and American bombs given to Israel.Imagine, Trump has ordered the firing of hundreds of thousands of Americans from Federal government jobs -- up to 40 percent of those Federal jobs among the targeted departments and bureaus are held by American Military Veterans.Is that how a President rewards veterans, a president who dodged the draft to avoid military service to profit and hang around with Jeffrey Epstein???Trump is giving $8 billion to Israel, a foreign country, and firing thousands of Americans from jobs because DOGE and Elon Musk assert it will save America $2 billion???Trump's tariff wars are going to kill our economy and push away our allies, which is exactly what Putin wants.LOCAL ELECTIONSThe biggest local election in the Chicagoland area is in Orland Park. Orland Park is the largest city between Chicago and Joliet, and actually the biggest city in the Southwest suburbs of Cook County. What happens there impacts the region financially and politically.The big races to watch there:1 - The Orland Fire Protection District, which many mayors like Pekau and others have said they want to control. They want to merge or consolidate, call it whatever you want, so they can raid the coffers. The OFPD has a fully funded pension that if the political pirates take control will siphon the funding out of that pension pool.I support three independent candidates who have First Responder experience: Fire Commissioner Donald "DJ" Jeffers, Fire Trustee Beth Damas Kaspar, and former Palos Heights Police Community Service Officer Bridget Tolan. The two slates of 3 candidates each running against them are slated by Pekau's slate and a slate run by the union and township superviso to takeover the district and eliminate the checks an dbalances between unions and governments, You don't put a government int he hands of a union. You respect the union and respect the government and that's how they negotiate responsibly.2 - The race for Mayor of Orland Park. Mayor Keith Pekau, one of the worst-ever mayors in the Chicagoland suburbs, is being challenged by a former Trustee with financial experience Jim Dodge. I think Dodge will win but he's not doing a great job of conveying his talents through media.3 - In Orland Township, a slate led by Dick Kelly is challenging Supervisor Paul O'Grady, whose allies have been behind many attacks against me personally and professionally. Kelly heads the ORLAND TOWNSHIP TOGETHER Slate which includesCindy Murray for ClerkAntonio Rubino for AssessorTracy Sullivan for Highway CommissionerMichael Schofield, retiring OFPD Fire Chief, for trusteeLena Matariyeh for TrusteeDaniel Flores for TrusteeKelly Metzger for Trustee.(Matariyeh represents the growing Arab community in Orland Park.)Enjoy the podcast

07-12-24 Ray Hanania on Radio in Michigan on the Biden-Trump presidential election

07-12-24 Ray Hanania on Radio in Michigan on the Biden-Trump presidential election Columnist Ray Hanania talks about the challenges facing President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump, the AbandonBiden movement, the challenges the nation faces from economy to crime, and what might happen in the presidential election as aguest host on WNZK AM 690 radio. Good morning everyone ... it is Friday July 12, 2024 ... I am Ray Hanania ... and this is the 4th Friday of the month here at Radio Baladi on WNZK AM 690 Radio I here on the 2nd Friday of every month ... during my off-season from Arab News Radio ... which should begin the six month season on August 1 ... overlapping the presidential elections We are broadcasting live on WNZK AM 690 radio and streaming live on the US Arab Radio Network at facebook.com/USArabRadio... check it out and share your comments there Make sure to check out my opinion and analysis columns at Hanania.com and my news stories and op-eds at ArabNews.com... And follow me on Tiktok ,Twitter -- @RayHanania -- to keep up with my political reports and my standup comedy bits ... Today I want to talk to listeners about President Joe Biden and his gaffs, the AbandonBiden campaign, Arabs and Chaldeans for Trump ... I was there at the debate last month when Biden looked like he was lost ... and then i listened to his speech at NATO ... he can't get away from the gaffs calling Zelensky Putin and Kamala Harris Vice President Trump What do you think about it all ... Visit https://www.Hanania.com to read all of Ray Hanania's syndicated columns