In the News
For decades, Chicago has had a backyard view of science at its most sublime. At Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory, physicists hone our understanding of the universe by trailblazing the frontier of the subatomic.
Illinois lawmakers from both sides of the aisle are pushing back against cuts in President Donald Trump's proposed budget, which they warn could mean layoffs at Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory in Batavia and Argonne National Laboratory near Darien.
Republican U.S. Rep. Randy Hultgren of Plano, whose district includes Fermilab, called that portion of the president's budget a "non-starter." He estimates 150 to 200 jobs at the facility might be affected by the budget plan.
Following the testimony of former FBI Director James Comey Thursday, Illinois District 11 Representative Bill Foster (D) is calling for an aggressive investigation into any hints of obstruction of justice. In a statement, Foster stressed the importance of transparency and accountability from the U.S. President during the ongoing investigation into Russian hacking.
Some local members of Congress are raising the alarm about proposed job and funding cuts at the Fermi Accelerator Laboratory and Argonne National Lab — and there's some political jabbing going on, too.
Democratic Congressman Bill Foster, the physicist, has Argonne Lab in his district. He says Democrats in Illinois' Congressional delegation sent Energy Secretary Rick Perry a letter seeking details of the proposed lab cuts, but couldn't get Republican colleagues to sign on.
U.S. Rep. Bill Foster blasted President Trump's decision to pull out of the Paris Climate Agreement and said it will financially hurt suburban companies.
Those at risk include Argonne National Laboratory near Lemont, which researches long-lasting batteries for electric vehicles to reduce emissions, and Ecolab. Nalco Holding Co., which has operations in Naperville, is a subsidiary of Ecolab and makes technologies for water and food safety and energy efficiency.
Members of the House of Representative Committee on Science, Space & Technology—including representative Don Beyer (VA), Jacky Rosen (NV), Mark Takano (CA), and a number of other Democrats—have signed and submitted a letter to President Trump expressing concern over the President's methods of receiving scientific information.
Rep. Bill Foster stood before 17 graduates of the Kane County Drug Rehabilitation Court and congratulated them for not letting addiction define their lives.
"You have made overcoming your struggle a defining moment in your life," said Foster (District 11). "You should be proud that you have not let drug addiction define who you are. You have made a decision to take your life back, to fight back. It is a decision we are all proud you made. We are all here to support you."
A panel featuring WGN meteorologist Tom Skilling and physicist-turned-congressman Bill Foster told a supportive audience Saturday at North Central College that deniers of human-caused climate change are the equivalent of the people who caused thousands of deaths by denying the science on cigarettes decades ago.
Foster, a Naperville Democrat, helped organize the panel as President Donald Trump weighs a decision to pull the United States out of the Paris Agreement on Climate Change.
One of Chicago's most venerated meteorologists joined a Naperville congressman, several scientists and a former EPA regulator at North Central College Saturday to discuss climate change data and urge individuals to take action.
WASHINGTON, D.C.—On a day when tens of thousands of people crowded the National Mall in Washington, D.C. to march for science, a Congressman who canboast the only science PhD on Capitol Hill is something of a celebrity.