Chicago's Chief Financial Officer and next Chief of Staff for Mayor Richard M. Daley, Paul Volpe, called a news conference Friday morning, laying out the fire money mess Chicago was faced with 2008.

Standing at the center of several bar graphs, made to illustrate the dire financial condition of the city, Volpe acknowledged the city's estimates for 2008 revenue was way off. In fact, even after lowering expectations in September, the city was still $31 million short by year's end.

You've gotta hand it to him, he's got hutzpah! (Though, not more than the guy who appointed him to the U-S Senate.) Roland Burris continues to chant that he IS the Junior Senator from Illinois. Almost like an affirmation that, if repeated enough, will eventually come true.

Is that's what's going on here - wishful thinking? Or is Mr. Burris, a former Illinois Attorney General, very much on 'legal' point?
(Afterall, the Governor of Illinois, despite his corruption scandal, is still legally the Governor; with Senate appointments falling within his domain.
But then again, there's also politics at play here.)

So, WHAT DO YOU THINK? Will Burris Ultimately Be Sworn in?

Below is an archive of unedited video of the recent impeachment committee's hearings. The hearings began in December after Gov. Blagojevich was arrested on federal criminal charges.

From The Breaking News Center: "In a historic vote, the Illinois House has impeached Gov. Rod Blagojevich, directing the Senate to put the state's 40th chief executive on trial with the goal of removing him from office."
Below is CLTV's video coverage of the story. Stay tuned to CLTV and The Breaking Center for continuous coverage throughout the day.

The unemployment rate in the United States soared to 7.2 percent in December as employers slashed 524,000 jobs.

Economists say more bad news could be ahead.

Programing note for all you Blue Demon (or Huskie) fans. CLTV will be airing the DePaul Womens' Basketball game on Tuesday Jan. 14th. They take on UConn. Coverage begins at 6:30 p.m.

The Sky Is Falling!
The Sky Is Falling!
It seems as if every other day, as of late, the frickin' Sky (translation: More Snow!) Is Falling!

This morning on the latest round, we were keeping track in-house of who'd WIN the 'longest-commute-to-work' honors! The unofficial results have them going to.. (drum roll)...
--GML host Garrard McClendon - at 3 hours!
--Followed by Producer Jenny Milkowski - 2 hours 45 minutes.
--And in third place: Multi-Media Designer Kristen Mertens - 2 hours 30 minutes.

The good news: It wasn't as bad as that 4 hours-plus evening commute alot of folks got caught up in during that Crazy Chicagoland Snowstorm last month.

At any rate, doesn't it seem to you like we've been getting nailed with January/February type weather since December? I know I'm not the only one who thinks so. Here's a direct quote from an email I got today from a friend: "This is the worst repeated bad early winter I can recall in years."

In the past (ie during Hurricane Katrina), when I've questioned some expert-types about whether these changing weather patterns are due to Global Warming, I've been told, "No." One meteorologist said that historically there've been similar weather patterns. I dunno.

Well, on the Staying-Warm front (now that we're also into the sub-zeros): Being a reporter who sometimes gets stuck working in the extreme weather, I at least have a good part of that down. However, I still haven't fully gotten the 'gloves thing' solved. My fingertips still tend to start to go. Would love any suggestions on the 'Best Gloves on the Planet' for keeping the cold at bay!

Would also love to see more fabulous.. or not so fabulous.. Winter Pics! Send yours to CLTVDESK@TRIBUNE.COM and chances are we'll air them. Please send FUNNY ones!!! Because at this point, seems only Mother Nature's laughing; we need to join in if we're going to SURVIVE Chicken Little's Little Joke!

As temperatures plunge to dangerous levels, people are encouraged to stay indoors. Below is a list of heating sites in the area.

Garrard McClendon and WVON's Cliff Kelley take a look back at Barack Obama's "Road the the White House." From his speech at the 2004 Democratic National Convention to Inauguration Day, McClendon and Kelley take a look at some of the important moments in Obama's rise.

Air Times:

Friday, Jan. 16 - 11am, 3pm
Saturday, Jan. 17 - 11am, 3pm
Sunday, Jan. 18 - 11am, 3pm

Also, please join us on Inauguration Day (Jan. 20th) for extensive coverage of Obama being sworn in as the 44th President of the United States.

The clips are also available below:

With temperatures down to seven degrees below zero and wind chills around 30 degrees below zero almost all school districts have cancelled school for the day except for the Chicago Public Schools and a few suburban schools.
CPS schools rarely close down for any weather related incidents. Is this a good thing or a bad thing?
With these sub zero temperatures it is dangerous for students to be in the cold waiting at bus stops or walking to nearby schools. However, if school is cancelled some parents have nowhere to bring their children for the day.
So are the CPS and the few suburban schools doing a responsible thing today by having school because they are helping out the parents or are they doing an irresponsible thing by not being cautious about the health of their students? What do you think? Let us know by leaving a comment below.

Update: A viewer requested we post the statement from CPS concerning yesterday's cold weather.

Metra has had two incidents occur in the past three days that have slowed or halted the running of certain lines.
First, an Amtrak train was stuck Wednesday because two of its cars derailed. This incident resulted in backing up Union Station and making it very difficult for people to get home.
The second incident happened Friday morning when a freight train derailed in Buffalo Grove causing the Metra North Line between Antioch and Chicago to shutdown.
Because both of these incidents did not directly involve Metra trains there is no reason to panic about the safety, but something else might scare you. The fact that when you get on public transportation you can get stuck anywhere along the way and basically stranded until the problem is fixed. People are extremely late for work as well as not being able to get home on time, making for long days and missed appointments. The catch is that more people are wanting to take public transportation in order to stay off the crowded and dangerous roads during this time of year.
So for those who prefer to take public transportation are you thinking twice before boarding that train?

Chicago Public Schools leaders on Friday put out a list of schools they plan to close, consolidate or try to turn around (all elementary schools except where noted):
(Source: ChicagoTribune.com)

On Tuesday, Barack Obama will become the country's 44th president. With the economy in the dumps, and the country involved in 2 wars, expectations for Obama are high.

On the eve of tomorrow's historic election day, CLTV invites you to take a look back at President-Elect Barack Obama's journey to Washington. From his speech at the 2004 Democratic National Convention to Inauguration Day, McClendon and Kelley take a look at some of the important moments in Obama's rise.
Also, please join us tomorrow, Inauguration Day (Jan. 20th) for extensive coverage of Obama being sworn in as the 44th President of the United States.

When you watch tomorrow's inauguration parade, you'll be watching the country's history and Chicago's as many local groups will be marching along side the new president. CLTV's Regina Waldrop caught up to these groups before they left for Washington.

24 Frazier Preparatory Academy students are on the educational opportunity of a lifetime. And their sharing their journey to Obama's inauguration online. Visit their site SharemyInauguration.com and their YouTube channel.

CLTV will begin live coverage of President-Elect Barack Obama's inauguration Tuesday morning at 9. We will have the swearing-in, and inaugural address, and parade. CLTV will also have live reaction, commentary, and analysis. Tune in Tuesday morning at 9!

Tears, screaming, silent joy, sober thoughts and pensive faces were all seen and heard during the inauguration ceremonies. As you watched the live coverage of the swearing in and first speech given by Barack Obama as President of the United States, what were the thoughts, feelings, emotions or musings that came over you?

If you missed it, want to see it again or you just want to record it, CLTV is your source this evening as we wrap up our historic coverage of the inauguration of Barack Obama.

The Tribune company is getting closer everyday to finding a new owner for the Chicago Cubs. Despite the 100 year championship drought the Cubs are one of the most valuable franchises in baseball because of the great fan attendance and national TV coverage. The search has been narrowed down to three finalists with one Joseph Ricketts, president of a corporate bond dealer, being the favorite. Ricketts is believed to have offered around $900 million for the team. With all of this going on we want to know, do the fans care?
Are some of the most loyal baseball fans in the history of baseball even paying attention to the change in ownership? Do you think that the change may be just what the team needs to break "the curse" or is it just something happening behind the scenes that will not affect the product on the field at all? Post your thoughts and remember spring training is just around the corner.

According to Chicago Breaking News the CPS is taking drastic measures to try to end the violence at recent high school basketball games. Three new rules have been implemented. All boys varsity games will begin at 4 P.M., the visiting team's fans will not be allowed to attend the games and in some cases, where there is a history of trouble between the schools, no fans will be allowed to attend the game.

If you missed Tuesday's historic inauguration CLTV has you covered!

This weekend CLTV will rebroadcast the swearing-in and address of President Barack Obama.

Catch history once again at 2pm Saturday and 8pm Sunday only on CLTV.

For the second time in two months Mayor Daley, when asked about Governor Blagojevich, repeated the word "Cuckoo".

A 14-year old boy impersonates a Chicago cop, and the real cops believed him.

The boy dressed up like a Chicago police officer and walked into the Grand Crossing station at 70th and Cottage Grove. He signed out a police radio and a ticket book. He even hit the streets, conducting traffic stops with another officer.

Details after the jump.

A 14 year old boy was a cop for five hours. Can this be serious? Is it really that easy? This young man doesn't even have a drivers license and yet he was able to walk into a police station check out a radio and get an assignment with a real police officer. It sounds like something out of the movie Catch Me If You Can.

Governor Rod Blagojevich's impeachment trial has started in the Illinois Senate. CLTV is committed to bringing you the most comprehensive local coverage of the trial. We will bring you the events on the senate floor as they happen until the final vote is taken.

Tune in daily for live coverage or check it out anytime in our cltv.com video player.

Have something to say about the impeachment trial? Join Garrard McClendon each night at 6:30 and 9:30 to give your opinion on GML.

Is the Governor's media blitz making you feel that he is in fact innocent and a victim of wrongful prosecution or does it make him look even more guilty than he did before? For some people if they were guilty the last place they would want to be is getting grilled by every journalist out there, but Governor Blagojevich is a much smoother talker than most people plus he seems to yearn for living on the edge. We want to know what you think and remember you can see all the live coverage of the Senate Impeachment trial on CLTV and if you miss it live you can see the unedited video here at CLTV.com.

Watch Governor Blagojevich's Senate impeachment trial live on CLTV today and throughout the rest of its duration. Todays coverage starts at 9:30 A.M. and will run through the afternoon. CLTV is commited to keeping you as up to date as possible on current events, that is why we broadcast as many live events as we can. Make sure to tune in to see if the Senate will decide when they will vote.

If you miss anything just go to our website to see the best parts or the whole trial unedited.

Have something to say about the impeachment trial? Join Garrard McClendon each night at 6:30 and 9:30 to give your opinion on GML.

It's over. Blagojevich is out and Quinn is in. However, we cannot afford to rest now. The State of Illinois faces some big challenges both financial and political and it is important that we act quickly with prudent decisions. This is why CLTV will be closely following the moves of brand new Governor Quinn as well as the rest of our public officials. It is important that these officials work for the people and the state of Illinois.