Retiring Ald. Danny Solis (25th), the powerful chairman of the City Council’s Zoning Committee, has secretly recorded more than a dozen conversations with Ald. Ed Burke (14th) over the last two years

Bombshell in Chicago. The Chicago Sun-Times reports:

Retiring Ald. Danny Solis (25th), the powerful chairman of the City Council’s Zoning Committee, has secretly recorded more than a dozen conversations with Ald. Ed Burke (14th) over the last two years, including at City Hall, to help federal investigators build their corruption case against him, the Chicago Sun-Times has learned.

Those conversations include Burke meeting with individuals seeking actions by the city, a source familiar with the matter said.


Federal investigators have focused on Burke allegedly using his influence as chairman of the City Council’s Finance Committee to drum up property tax appeal business for his private law firm.

Some of the meetings Solis recorded using an electronic listening device took place at the suite of offices reserved for the Finance Committee chairman on the third floor of City Hall.

That’s the same suite that federal investigators raided Nov. 29, covering the glass doors with brown butcher paper to conceal the search inside.

Other meetings allegedly took place at Burke’s ward office, the source said. The FBI searched that office the same day as the City Hall raid.

Burke, the City Council’s longest-serving alderman, has been charged with one count of attempted extortion for allegedly shaking down a Burger King franchise owner for legal business at the same time the company needed permits for work on a restaurant in his ward.

He is also accused of shaking down the same businessman for a $10,000 campaign contribution for County Board President Toni Preckwinkle. Preckwinkle’s campaign returned the donation, which exceeded the legal limits, and has said it knew nothing about what prompted the donation.

Solis’ cooperation is extraordinary, not only because the target was Burke but because Solis was a trusted ally of both Burke and Mayor Rahm Emanuel. Solis’ position as Zoning Committee chairman gave him the influence and standing to arrange for meetings where Burke could pitch potential clients.

This could become one of the biggest scandals in Chicago history. It appears that the Trump Justice Department is going after the big dogs of the Democrat party in Chicago. Did Rahm not run for a 3rd term because he got caught on a wire? Here' more on the career of Danny Solis.