Good morning, Chicago.
With a goodbye to their mom, Sam and Ben Luhmann walked out the screen door of their West Chicago home on a recent weekday morning.
A few minutes shy of 7:30 a.m., Ben pulled their midsize sedan out of the garage as Sam stood in the driveway, adjusting the straps around his shoulders and checking his phone.
But the brothers weren’t gunning to beat the first bell at school. They were racing to find ICE.
At 16 and 17 years old, Sam and Ben for the past two months have made it their mission to follow, investigate and capture federal immigration activity across the Chicago area. It’s an undertaking the brothers say happened naturally after growing up in a household where social justice and civic duty were as much a part of their homeschool curriculum as math and science.
“If I get the opportunity to fight like this for the rest of my life, I would be totally OK with that,” Ben said.
Read the full story from the Tribune’s Tess Kenny.
Here are the top stories you need to know to start your day, including when federal government operations will be up and running, why MLS owners voted to shift the season and a look into the archives at when the musical “Chicago” opened on Broadway.
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A sign that reads “Closed due to federal government shutdown,” is seen outside of the National Gallery of Art in Washington, Oct. 6, 2025. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)
You can end a shutdown overnight — but you can’t reopen a government that fast
The longest government shutdown in U.S. history is over — on paper, at least. But the American public isn’t done with it yet: Getting everything back up and running doesn’t happen all at once.
Republicans promised health care negotiations after the shutdown, but Democrats are wary
Families brace for continued gaps in Head Start service despite government reopening
Gov. JB Pritzker takes questions at the Illinois Capitol during the legislative session, Oct. 30, 2025, in Springfield. (John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune)
Gov. JB Pritzker renews push for Illinois homeowners’ insurance rate oversight after bill fails in state House
Gov. JB Pritzker renewed his call yesterday for legislation requiring insurance companies to justify and disclose the reasons behind steep homeowners’ insurance rate hikes — a proposal that stalled in the Illinois House last month despite support from the Democratic-controlled Senate.
Pritzker said the state’s lack of authority over insurers leaves homeowners vulnerable to sharp premium increases, pointing to Bloomington-based State Farm’s decision this summer to raise home insurance rates by more than 27%.
Plaintiffs’ attorneys and federal officials, including Michelle Garcia, Danielle Berkowsky, Samuel Cole, Jonathan Manes and Patrick Johnson, arrive for a tour of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement holding facility in Broadview on Nov. 13, 2025, as part of discovery for the ongoing lawsuit about conditions inside. (E. Jason Wambsgans/Chicago Tribune)
Attorneys visit ‘black box’ ICE processing center in Broadview
As a small group of protesters flanked a street leading to the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement processing center in Broadview, a group of attorneys yesterday completed a tour of the building, becoming some of the only outsiders in recent months to view the interior amid scrutiny over allegedly inhumane conditions.
The Tribune got a rare look inside Broadview’s ICE processing center in 2009. Here’s what we saw.
Federal agents use tear gas and smoke on community members and activists while they protest near the 3900 block of South Kedzie Avenue, Oct. 4, 2025, in Chicago. (Armando L. Sanchez/Chicago Tribune)
Federal judge to hold permanent injunction hearing on use of force by immigration agents before next spring
A federal judge yesterday said she will hold a hearing on a permanent injunction to limit the use of force by federal immigration agents ahead of any potential future enforcement mission.
Immigration agents make arrest outside Leighton courthouse, leaving behind broken fence
Trump’s next immigration crackdown will target Charlotte, North Carolina, a sheriff says
The Dirksen U.S. Courthouse in Chicago. (Antonio Perez/Chicago Tribune)
Suburban contractor caught in probe of ex-McCook Mayor Jeff Tobolski charged with tax evasion
A suburban contractor swept up in the corruption investigation of then-McCook Mayor Jeff Tobolski has been charged with tax evasion, tying up a loose end in a sprawling probe that brought down more than a dozen people.
Deborah Norville in the WCIU-TV studio in Chicago’s West Loop on Nov. 10, 2025. Norville is hosting “The Perfect Line,” a new quiz show airing on Channel 26. (Eileen T. Meslar/Chicago Tribune)
Deborah Norville, the former ‘Inside Edition’ host and Chicago TV anchor, has a brand-new game
After nearly a half-century of doing television news, Deborah Norville, the former Chicago star who became the longest-serving female anchor in TV history at the nationally syndicated “Inside Edition,” is ready to try something different: game show host.
Chicago Fire fans celebrate after the team’s 3-1 victory over Orlando City during an Eastern Conference wild-card playoff game Oct. 22, 2025, at SeatGeek Stadium in Bridgeview. (Chris Sweda/Chicago Tribune)
MLS owners vote to shift the season to a July-to-May calendar starting in 2027
Major League Soccer owners voted yesterday to shift the league’s season to a summer-to-spring calendar in 2027, bringing it more in line with its international counterparts.
Bears quarterback Caleb Williams looks to pass during the first quarter against the Giants on Nov. 9, 2025, at Soldier Field. (Eileen T. Meslar/Chicago Tribune)
3 things we learned from the Chicago Bears, including Caleb Williams trying to improve with his progressions
Even the numbers show the Bears have been at their best when their backs are against the wall.
Here are three things we learned yesterday at Halas Hall.
Bebe Neuwirth and the cast of “Chicago” perform during the Tony Awards at the Beacon Theatre on June 12, 2016, in New York. (Evan Agostini/Invision/AP)
Today in Chicago History: ‘Chicago’ opens on Broadway — and remains after more than 11,400 performances
On this day in 1996, a revival of the 1975 musical “Chicago” — which was based on a play written by former Tribune reporter Maurine Dallas Watkins — opened on Broadway at the Richard Rodgers Theatre in New York.
Murder, mayhem and ‘all that jazz’ — the real women who inspired Oscar winner ‘Chicago’
Colton Sims with JP Coletta, Cody Siragusa and Teah Kiang Mirabelli in “Million Dollar Quartet Christmas” at Marriott Theatre in Lincolnshire. (Justin Barbin)
Review: ‘Million Dollar Quartet Christmas’ lets Elvis, Jerry Lee Lewis and crew get into the spirit of the season
“Million Dollar Quartet Christmas” at the Marriott Theatre is a spinoff of the popular jukebox musical “Million Dollar Quartet,” writes Emily McClanathan. This version with a new book by Colin Escott (co-writer of the original) reimagines the real-life jam session by Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins and Elvis Presley with holiday tunes performed in their signature styles.