In the first debate of the 2024 presidential election season, Former President Donald Trump faced off against President Joseph Biden. The two heatedly discussed policies ranging from inflation to immigration for over 90 minutes, with both candidates hurling insults about the other’s platform and time in office.

The debate began at CNN’s Atlanta Studios at 9 p.m. EST. Jake Tapper and Dana Bash moderated and, in rules agreed upon before the debate, each candidate was given two minutes to answer each question, one minute for responses and rebuttals and two minutes for closing remarks.

Tapper opened the line of questioning by asking Biden about national inflation and what he would say to voters who feel “worse off” under his presidency than Trump’s.

Biden claimed that the Trump Administration left the economy hard-pressed, and that his work has brought down the prices of prescription drugs. He claimed that he would continue to work upon re-election to “bring down the price around the kitchen table.”

Trump disagreed in his response, saying Biden’s administration inherited “almost no inflation” from his term.

The topic then transitioned to the state of national debt. Trump responded first and tailored his answer around his response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“More people died under (Biden’s) administration than our administration, and we were right in the middle of it,” Trump said.

“He had the largest national debt of any president in a four-year period,” Biden said in his response.

Abortion — the next policy on the docket — was, to Trump, a political question that he repeatedly said should be in the hands of the states.

“We brought it back to the states, and the country is coming together on this issue,” Trump said.

Biden’s response triggered discourse between the two candidates on Roe v. Wade’s stance on late-term abortion. Trump claimed that some democratic states have supported “after-birth” abortions, and Biden repeatedly cited his support for the 1973 Supreme Court decision upholding federal protections on abortion.

Immigration, a main point of contention between the two candidates throughout the night, yielded more heated discourse between Trump and Biden. When asked about the “overburdening” of cities such as New York and Chicago with migrants, Biden showed optimism about the “bi-partisan” agreement recently reached by Congress and condemned Trump’s immigration policies.

“When he was president, he was separating babies from their mothers,” Biden said.

Trump replied saying that Biden disregarded his request for the nation’s borders to be closed, claiming Biden “just left (the southern border) open.”

“He’s exaggerating,” Biden replied. “He’s lying.”

Trump continued his response by stating he plans to crack down on illegal immigration.

“We have to get a lot of these people out, and we have to get them out fast,” Trump said.

When asked about foreign policy, specifically the ongoing war in Ukraine, Trump pivoted to criticize Biden’s handling of troops in Afghanistan. He claimed that Biden has consistently given more than “$200 billion” to Ukraine, and that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is the “greatest salesman ever.”

After calling Trump’s sentiments “malarkey,” Biden responded by saying that Russian President Vladimir Putin is “a war criminal.”

Bash continued the line of questioning by asking Biden about the Oct. 7 attacks on Israel and the ongoing “humanitarian crisis” in Gaza in light of the Israel-Hamas war. Biden said that Israeli President Benjamin Netanyahu is willing to endorse the previously proposed ceasefire resolution, but the administration is “still pushing hard” for Hamas to accept the terms.

Trump was then asked if he supported the establishment of an independent Palestinian state.

“I have to see,” Trump said.

While Biden claimed that Hamas’ hesitation to accept the ceasefire proposal was the reason the Israel-Hamas War is ongoing, Trump disagreed.

“(Biden) said that the only one who wants to keep going is Hamas,” Trump said. “Actually, Israel is the one, and you should let them go and let them finish the job.”

The topic then transitioned to the Jan. 6, 2021 capitol insurrection. Trump pivoted by saying that the country boasted a “great border” and “energy independence” at the time. 

Biden, condemning the day as a dark spot in American history, said that Trump “talked about (the insurrectionists) being patriots.” He added that those responsible for Jan. 6 should be in prison.

The topic of the insurrection led to a bitter back-and-forth. Trump criticized Biden’s handling of the Black Lives Matter protests in Minnesota, and Biden responded by bringing up Trump’s recent felony conviction.

Responding to Biden’s citation of his New York trial, Trump called Judge Juan Merchan “horrible” and said “the public knows it’s a scam.”

The two proceeded to debate the importance of upholding democracy approaching the 2024 election. 

“This guy has no sense of American democracy,” Biden said.

Trump responded by saying Biden is “not equipped” for the presidency.

The debate continued with discussions of issues raised by African American voters. Biden, adding that employment for the demographic is “at the lowest it’s been in a long time,” said that he understands inflation has been hurting the entirety of the nation and hopes to reduce childcare costs.

“He caused the inflation,” Trump said. “It’s killing people – they can’t buy groceries anymore.”

In talks about the handling of climate change, Trump upheld his removal of the nation from the Paris Climate Accords on the grounds that the country was treated “horribly” during its participation. Biden criticized Trump’s handling and emphasized the need for the international climate agreement. 

The question of combating rising childcare costs was then posed, considering that they have reached an annual average of $11,000 per child as of 2024. However, the debate pivoted into an argument over firings of staff and insults thrown between the two over the defense of the nation’s military and the state of the middle class. 

Each of the candidates proceeded to discuss plans for the nation’s opioid crisis upon re-election and what they’ve already done to combat drug addiction.

“We were doing very well with addiction until COVID came along,” Trump replied.

In response, Biden claimed that he’s worked on “bi-partisan” deals to remedy addiction nationwide.

Nearing the end of the 90 allotted minutes of debate time, the candidates addressed concerns about their ages and fitness for presidency. Biden, saying that he was once criticized for being the second-youngest senator ever elected, said that Trump was only three years younger than him and “a lot less confident.” Trump countered the point by saying he “aced” two cognitive exams that he volunteered to take himself.

In the final question of the night, Trump was asked multiple times if he would accept the results of the election, no matter the outcome.

“If it is a fair and reasonable election, absolutely,” Trump said. 

The discussion of election acceptance resulted in a litany of accusations between the two candidates. Biden, after Trump claimed he would “drive us into World War III,” said that the United States is needed to “protect the world.”

To conclude the debate, Biden began his closing remarks in support of his policies on Medicaid and his handling of big pharma and emphasized his ongoing quest to bring down inflation. Trump closed by supporting his treatment of U.S. veterans and claiming Biden is a “complainer” who “makes our country unsafe.” 

marypp2@dailyillini.com

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President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump will go head-to-head on Thursday in the first presidential debate of the 2024 race. The event will be the first debate for both candidates in this election cycle, with neither participating in the primary debates.

CNN’s Atlanta studio will hold the debate in Georgia at 8 p.m. CT on Thursday, deviating from the traditional debate host — the nonpartisan Commission on Presidential Debates, which has hosted the debates since 1988. 

The change in setting comes after the Biden campaign team announced that they would not be participating in debates sponsored by the Commission, but would agree to two debates before the November election. The next debate is scheduled for September. 

Both candidates had to agree to a list of rules set by CNN in order to participate in the debate, many of which differ from past debate structures.

Primarily, in order to participate in Thursday’s debate, the candidates must have their name on enough state ballots to reach the Electoral College threshold needed to win the presidency. They also must have received 15% support in four separate national polls of registered and expected voters.

With a total runtime of 90 minutes and two ad breaks, the debate will be hosted by CNN anchors Jake Tapper and Dana Bash. The candidates are not permitted to interact with the campaign staff during the allotted time for ad breaks.

The debate is also set to occur without a live audience to prevent disruption. This differs from previous debate structures, in which a live studio audience was commonplace. The only other debate in modern history not featuring an audience was the Kennedy-Nixon debate in 1960.

Furthermore, the candidates will have their microphones muted while the other candidate is speaking to prevent talking over each other. 

There will be no opening statements, and candidates will have two minutes to answer questions: one minute for rebuttal and one to respond to the rebuttal.

The candidates will also not be permitted to bring any pre-prepared notes on stage, but will be given a pen, a pad of paper and a water bottle.

CNN also reported that President Biden’s team won the coin toss, allowing them to choose either who will make the closing argument and where the candidates will stand on the stage. Biden’s team opted to choose his position on the stage as the right side, allowing Trump to make the closing argument. 

Those who wish to watch the debate can tune in on CNN, CNN International, CNN en Español and CNN Max. Fox News and ABC will also air the debate live with programming before and after. 

CNN and USA Today will also stream the debate live on YouTube, and those without cable access can watch live on the CNN website.

aka10@dailyillini.com 

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Hundreds of phones across the state of Illinois blared with an alert from the National Weather Service on the evening of May 21. The alert warned people of the near zero visibility due to an impending storm blowing dust across multiple interstate highways. 

After the dust storm in April of 2023, which caused a major car crash on I-55, resulting in the deaths of at least six people, the recurring weather phenomenon has become a cause for concern among many residents of the Midwest. 

Andrew Margenot, professor in Agricultural, Consumer & Environmental Sciences at the University, drew parallels from today’s weather to the 1930s Dust Bowl. 

“The Dust Bowl was, like, apocalyptic levels of dust. We’re thankfully well away from that.” Margenot said. “Have we gotten better? Yeah, but have we solved it? No, we haven’t.”

According to Margenot, one of the main causes of dust storms is the tilling, or breaking up of the soil, that farmers do in order to plant their crops. 

“Farmers typically till their fields. People have been tilling soil forever, as long as we’ve farmed as a species,” Margenot said.

When loose topsoil from tilling mixes with high wind speeds and dry weather, the soil lifts into the air, resulting in dust storms. These storms are dangerous as the dust can cause low visibility for drivers and damage the respiratory system if inhaled. 

Margenot pointed out that other states, not just Illinois, have been experiencing severe dust storms as well. 

“If you go further west, like North Dakota, South Dakota, they’ve been having serious dust storms,” Margenot said. “But there’s less people there so it’s gotten less attention than out here.”

Robert Hirschfeld, University alumnus and director of water policy of Prairie Rivers Network, an environmentalist nonprofit in Champaign, explained some of the ways farmers can prevent environmental harm. 

“Cover crops are something you could do, buffer strips, windbreaks,” Hirschfeld said. “You know we’ve taken out so many of our breaks and our trees and our buffer strips because the economic incentive is to plant every last available acre in corn and soybeans, and that has to change.”

Cover crops are planted in the off-season to keep the soil fertile and prevent erosion, while buffer strips are planted around the perimeter of a farm to catch the runoff from pesticides and fertilizers. These are measures often used on farms to prevent soil from inadvertently contaminating the surrounding environment. 

Hirschfeld added that he is aware of some of the downsides to these practices, including labor and financial concerns. 

“It can be more work, there can be some expenses,” Hirshfield said. 

Hirschfeld also noted that despite efforts to push for more environmentally conscious farming practices, many farmers are reluctant to change. 

“Some of it is that people don’t want to be told what to do with their land,” Hirschfeld said.  “Part of me understands that, but I don’t want your land blowing onto the interstate. So I think there’s a cultural component there.”

Currently, the U.S. Department of Agriculture oversees a number of voluntary conservation programs. These programs allow for the state government to give farmers funding to help them implement environmental conservation measures on their farms, such as water protection, soil erosion reduction and wetland and wildlife habitat preservation.

Hirschfeld said he believes that these conservation measures are ineffective. 

“We allow it to be voluntary, and we shouldn’t be surprised when people just don’t bother,” Hirschfeld said. “I think we’d be better off making a level playing field where everybody has to abide by the same rules, so it’s not a race to the bottom.” 

However, Margenot said he believes there is too much pressure being placed on the farmers to change their practices. 

“We have to support farmers a little bit more to help them transition,” Margenot said. “On the one hand, farmers till to farm, that’s how we get food… There is no way around that. Can we till differently? Yeah, but that’s not exactly easy.” 

jahzara2@dailyillini.com 

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Son of President Joe Biden, Hunter Biden, is facing up to 25 years in prison after being found guilty on three charges regarding lying on a screening form about drug abuse, lying to a gun dealer and lying about possessing a gun.

The investigation on Biden began in 2020 after his father was elected president. The initial investigation began by examining Biden’s tax affairs then leading to investigating the purchase of his gun in 2018.

The trial, the first of its kind, was held in Biden’s hometown of Wilmington, Delaware where he faced 12 jurors just days after Former President Trump was convicted.

Biden’s conviction came after a plea deal from July 2023 that would resolve Biden of all charges regarding the gun and tax affairs fell through.

Biden will face another federal trial in California in September that will focus on his history of tax evasion.

President Biden, who initially issued a statement supporting his son, has since issued another statement to ABC News saying he has no plans of pardoning his son upon his conviction. 

mkw9@dailyillini.com

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For 13 days last semester, pro-Palestine supporters set up encampments — first at Alma Mater, then on the Main Quad — to demand the University cut ties with companies profiting from the war in Gaza.

These protesters are not alone. Student bodies at over 100 colleges in 30 states around the country have pressured their administration to be held accountable for their investments as well as partnerships with Israel.

On Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups launched a surprise invasion of southern Israel, killing 1,200 Israelis and abducting 250. In Israel’s subsequent bombing campaign and invasion of Gaza, the military has killed 36,000 Palestinians,  with over 1.7 million internally displaced, and the enclave is also facing a severe food and humanitarian crisis, according to the United Nations. 

In January, the International Court of Justice ordered Israel to take measures to prevent genocide in Gaza. Eight months into the war, the International Criminal Court now seeks arrest warrants for war crimes against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and Hamas leadership. 

On April 28, Students for Justice in Palestine at the University published a list of demands on their Instagram. They asked the administration to divest from corporations profiting from the occupation of Palestine, cease collaborations with corporations involved in the oppression of Palestinians and publicly disclose all of its financial assets.

So, what do these calls for divestment mean and what would potential divestment look like? 

The University is well endowed 

The University has two large pools of money: the University of Illinois System and the University of Illinois Foundation. 

University of Illinois System

The first, the University of Illinois System, holds $4.9 billion in assets as of fiscal year 2023. This $4.9 billion is split into the Operating Pool and the Endowment Pool. The Operating Pool — composed of revenue from tuition, state funding and grants — makes up $3.72 billion, and the Endowment Pool — worth $1.07 billion — comes from private gifts and donations. 

UIS is managed by a board of trustees, who set investment policies and appoint members to oversee committees such as the audit, budget, finance and facilities committees. The UIS is a public body, and information about the UIS’s portfolio was obtained through the Freedom of Information Act. 

University of Illinois Foundation 

The second pool, the University of Illinois Foundation, serves as the fundraising and private gift-receiving organization of the University. In 2023, UIF had an endowment worth $2.73 billion. However, unlike UIS, the UIF is not a public body under the FOIA and the exact contents of the organization’s investments are unknown. 

Institutional ties to the war in Gaza and Israel

Money Out

The UIS portfolio held $21.3 million in assets tied to companies involved in the war in Gaza and Israel in fiscal year 2023. These assets consisted of investments in the following companies. 

• $20.3 million in BAE Systems PLC., Boeing Co., Northrup Grumman Co., Caterpillar Inc. and Lockheed Martin Co. These companies are present on the Action Center for Corporate Accountability’s divestment list of publicly traded companies that “enable or facilitate human rights violations or violations of international law” in Gaza. 

• $443,000 in State of Israel securities in the form of a corporate bond and an international government bond. 

• $643,000 in Expedia Group, linked to the Israeli occupation of the West Bank in a 2020 report by the United Nations. 

Much of the UIS’s money is placed in the hands of third parties. These external managers, known as asset management companies, set and manage their own investment funds. 

Most notably, UIS invested a total of approximately $387 million in two funds managed by BlackRock Inc., the world’s largest asset manager. These two funds were the ACS US ESG Insights Equity Fund, in which the UIS invested $228 million, and the ACS World ESG Insights Equity Fund, which holds the other $159 million. 

According to BlackRock’s website, the engine manufacturer GE Aerospace represents 1.56% of total holdings in the US EGS Insights Fund and 1.42% of total holdings in the World ESG Insights Fund. 

The U.S. Department of Defense awarded a $684 million contract to GE Aerospace, the legal successor to General Electric, to manufacture helicopter engines for the U.S. Navy and Israeli military in 2023. 

Thus, the 2023 UIS portfolio holds at least an additional $5.8 million, related to war in Gaza, managed by BlackRock. Combined, there is a sum of $27.2 million in University investments linked to the war in Gaza and Israel in FY 23. This number is a lower bound and excludes any investments in the UIF portfolio. 

Money In 

University connections to some of the previously mentioned companies also extend beyond institutional investments by UIS. Several of these companies support the University through donations, projects and academic programs. 

According to their website, the Grainger College of Engineering’s industry partners include Boeing, Caterpillar and RTX Co. (formerly known as Raytheon Technologies Co.). In 2023, Boeing — one of the world’s largest defense contractors — pledged $300,000 over the next three years in support of the Center for Sustainable Aviation at the University. 

Caterpillar, which has supplied armored bulldozers to Israel for decades, operates a satellite office based out of Research Park. Last November, the Champaign-Urbana chapter of the Party for Socialism and Liberation organized a student and worker demonstration at the Caterpillar office in support of Palestine. 

What calls for “divestment” really mean

Given the complexities behind University investments and multilateral links to companies involved in the war, what does divestment mean — both as an idea and a realistic course of action?

In itself, divestment is the act of selling off shares and stopping future investments in specific companies or a sector.

“Basically, you’re selling the current holdings you have, you’re restricting new investments … and you’re doing it in a manner that continues to meet your fund’s investment return targets,” said Dan Cohn, energy finance analyst at the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis. 

Reasons for divesting can vary, but it is often to achieve a political, social or ethical goal. Alternatively, it can be for purely financial reasons. For example, Cohn said the movement to divest from the fossil fuel industry uses not only a moral argument against climate change but also an economic one. 

“The fossil fuel sector is no longer producing the kinds of financial returns for investment portfolios that it once did, and when you take a serious look at its future, the future looks pretty limited,” Cohn said. “We see divestment as being a practical way to limit endowment losses from fossil fuels.” 

Illinois Rep. Abdulnasser Rashid, the first Palestinian-American elected to the Illinois House of Representatives, pointed out that divestment is very targeted, citing Lockheed Martin as one instance. 

“One example is a university’s endowment investing in Lockheed Martin, a weapons manufacturer which is very much aware that Israel is using … its weapons to commit war crimes — yet it’s still supplying Israel with those weapons,” Rashid said. “A divestment call says that the University’s endowments should not be investing in Lockheed Martin and it is as straightforward as that.” 

Divestment from the war in Gaza is primarily based on ethical grounds — supporters say the University has a moral impetus to cease financially supporting companies complicit in genocide.

On May 10, Students for Justice in Palestine and Faculty for Justice in Palestine released a joint statement in which they argued this idea. According to the statement “The U of I System puts millions of dollars into the Israeli war machine and refuses to acknowledge it. The U of I System must be held accountable for its complicity in the ongoing genocide in Gaza and the occupation of Palestine.” 

Yet, divestment is not as clear-cut in execution.

Challenges to divestment 

The Board of Trustees, in charge of the UIS portfolio, is a fiduciary body and is responsible for the system as a whole, per their website. Thus, calls for divestment can conflict with the financial interests of the University. 

“Divestment by its nature undermines the diversity of investments,” said University College of Law Professor Lesley Wexler over email. “With the nature of modern investments, it often means selling not just stock in a single company, but getting out of a fund that incorporates hundreds of companies — only some of which might be ones that students wish to divest from.” 

George Taylor, sophomore in FAA, is a member of Students for Environmental Concerns and a pro-Palestinian supporter who acknowledged these difficulties. He compared the two ongoing divestment movements at the University. 

“With the fight to divest from fossil fuels, there are very specific companies … we could identify and then pose alternatives to,” Taylor said. “But with the war effort, we can divest from all the small companies that we want … but we’ll still be giving money to Blackrock, and Blackrock is gonna give money back to those (companies).”

Divestment from the war in Gaza also faces legal challenges. 

Known as anti-boycott, divest and sanction laws, these policies aim to take action against boycotts of Israel. Illinois’ anti-BDS law, the first of its kind passed in 2015, applies to the state pension system. 

“The Illinois retirement system must sell (redeem, divest or withdraw) all direct holdings of companies identified by the Illinois Investment Policy Board and it may not acquire securities of restricted companies,” Wexler said. “In other words, the Illinois pension system can’t invest in companies that are engaged in boycott activities towards Israel.”

Anti-BDS laws also vary from state to state. For example, in Ohio,  Revised Code Section 9.76 prevents state agencies from contracting with companies that divest from Israel. Therefore, per the Columbus Dispatch, Ohio State University legally cannot divest from Israel. 

However, these financial and legal challenges have not impeded schools around the country from divesting.

Other schools have divested, and so has UI (in the past) 

Several other universities have agreed to take steps towards potential divestment, typically in return for student encampments shutting down. 

On April 30, Brown University became one of the first major universities to come to an agreement with protestors, with the Office of the President releasing a statement that declared Brown would act in two ways. First, the university would hear students’ concerns about divestment at a corporate meeting in May. Second, and more significantly, the Office of the President asked the school’s Advisory Committee on University Resources Management to write a divestment recommendation to be put to a vote in October. 

“The students and administration agreed that I will ask the Advisory Committee on University Resources Management (ACURM) to provide me with a recommendation on the matter of divestment by September 30, 2024, and this will be brought to the Corporation for a vote at the October 2024 Corporation meeting,” the statement said. 

Similarly, the University of Minnesota agreed to hear students at a board meeting and make their investments more transparent — again in return for their encampment closing. The Evergreen State College in Washington declared they would explore potential divestment by creating a committee of students and faculty tasked with reviewing investment policies. 

Union Theological Seminary, an affiliate of Columbia University in New York, became the first school to adopt a divestment plan when, on May 9, the Board of Trustees endorsed policies by Union’s investment committees that directly target investments in Israel. 

According to a statement by Union, the policies include “revising the section of our investment policy statement section pertaining to responsible investing to include an overt reference to the Israel-Palestine hostilities, in addition to current robust policies regarding fossil fuels, military weapons, private prisons, etc.”

The policies also target Union’s externally managed investment, with Union “directing our investment managers to exclude those companies from the portfolios managed on behalf of Union.”

While there have been discussions between protestors and the University of Illinois administration last semester, they have not reached any agreements to divest. But the University of Illinois has divested in the past. 

In the 1980s, there was a large push for divestment from companies profiting from apartheid in South Africa. Protesters built a shantytown on the Main Quad, staged mock riots and sent out postcards calling for the release of South African political prisoners. 

In 1987, after having defeated previous motions, the Board of Trustees agreed to divest, however, the move was largely viewed as symbolic, as the total divested was just $3.3 million.

What then, would divestment actually accomplish? 

In this context, Rashid said he believes divesting even a small amount of money can snowball into a much larger effect.   

“Three million here and 10 million there and 100 million here — it will add up and will have an impact economically and financially on the companies that are being divested from such that they change their policies and no longer supply Israeli weapons,” Rashid said. 

Rashid added students and grassroots movements calling for divestment make a tangible difference beyond the finances. 

“They’re educating so many people about what’s happening and what has been happening to Palestinians for decades, and that itself is a major victory (to help) change the hearts and minds of generations of people,” Rashid said. 

Institutional divestment also sends a signal to the rest of the market in general, Cohn noted.

“There’s people who say when you (divest), institutional investors are basically telling the rest of the market this company is not that creditworthy, and I think that’s true,” Cohn said.

Looking ahead

Beyond the University’s financial priorities and potential legal issues, creating a comprehensive divestment policy plan is not a simple task.

“It requires some due diligence to make a specific plan and it requires some deliberation about that plan to make sure it’s done right,” Cohn said, speaking broadly on divestment.

Still, if the University plans to divest — as many hope it will — it will have examples from other major universities and its own history of divestment as reference. 

For now, Rashid, who visited the encampment at the University with fellow Illinois Rep. Carol Ammons, emphasized the need for transparency and dialogue between protestors and University administration. 

“I encourage the students, faculty, administrators and trustees at the University to work together in good faith to make sure that the investment of the University … are in line with their values,” Rashid said. “There should be real engagement by those who are in decision-making positions with the students and the faculty who are asking for divestment.” 

aidanm5@dailyillini.com

jessiew4@dailyillini.com  

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Allerton Park & Retreat Center of Monticello will host Camp Lost Garden, a summer camp for adults, from June 27-30. The event includes a variety of activities designed to offer participants a blend of recreation, relaxation and nature experiences.

Camp Lost Garden, now in its second year, will feature traditional camp activities such as arts and crafts, group games, campfires, and nature hikes. Adult-oriented activities include a cocktail crafting workshop, a ‘boots and brews’ hike, a beach-themed dance party, open bars and live music.

Jordan Zech, the park’s associate director of retreat center and programming, wrote in a press release that the camp provides both structured activities and ample free time for participants to unwind and roam the park at their leisure.

“Campers can expect a variety of activities including arts and crafts, recreational activities, team building, but also plenty of time to just relax and enjoy nature,” Zech wrote. “There is built in free-time for campers to relax and explore the park, but they can also skip any planned activities to extend the relaxation component as much as they want.”

Additionally, campers will be able to attend The Farms: An Allerton Folk School through breakout sessions planned throughout the event. The Farms is Illinois’ first folk school, offering classes, workshops, retreats and gatherings focused on art, outdoor education and storytelling.

Campers will also be able to experience the Illinois 4-H Memorial Camp challenge course, a ropes course involving various obstacles and challenges, such as navigating a large spider web and scaling a 12-foot wall.

The camp fee is $350 per participant, which includes all activities, meals, snacks and drinks. The park is also offering overnight accommodations, with discounted hotel rooms, or for a cheaper option, tent camping on the Bowling Lawn. 

Registration is open until June 21, and a later session of Camp Lost Garden is scheduled for Oct 17-20. For more information including the full camp schedule, visit the park’s website. 

qjato2@dailyillini.com

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As part of the recently approved state budget for the fiscal year beginning July 1, Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker and the Illinois General Assembly authorized an increase in funding for the University of Illinois System. The new budget allocates $710.6 million to the system, a 1.8% increase from the current fiscal year.

In a press release published on Friday, University of Illinois System President Tim Killeen expressed gratitude for the increased funding, highlighting the importance of state support.

“We recognize and appreciate Gov. Pritzker’s and the General Assembly’s challenges in addressing needs on a variety of fronts, and we are immensely grateful for their continued support of higher education,” Killeen wrote.

Included in the total state budget is an increase in funding for the Monetary Award Program, the state’s primary student financial aid program. MAP funding will rise to $711.6 million, a $10 million, or 1.4% increase compared to the current fiscal year. This program provides financial aid to nearly 22,000 students across the University system’s campuses in Champaign-Urbana, Springfield and Chicago. 

Killeen highlighted the importance of MAP, noting, “About 80% of the U of I System’s undergraduate students are from the state of Illinois, and MAP is an important resource for many of them and their families.”

The budget also significantly increases funding for campus mental health services, more than doubling the current amount from $3.4 million to $7 million. This boost aims to address the growing need for mental health resources among students.

Support for veterans and National Guard members has also increased, with $6 million allocated to restore funding for their education, seeking to prevent financial barriers from hindering these individuals from pursuing higher education.

Additionally, the Prairie Research Institute, which conducts scientific inquiry in various fields such as natural history, archaeology, geology and sustainable technology will receive a $200,000 increase in its operations funding. This marks a 1.3% increase from the current year’s $15.2 million budget. 

To address infrastructure needs, the budget allocates $575 million for deferred maintenance and construction at higher education facilities. This includes $450 million for state universities and $125 million for state community colleges, aiming to complete key projects under the state’s Rebuild Illinois program.

The University system’s current fiscal year budget breakdown can be viewed here. More details regarding the state’s 2025 fiscal year budget are available here. 

qjato2@dailyillini.com

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Former president Donald J. Trump has been found guilty on 34 counts of falsifying business records in the first degree, Thursday, making him the first president in U.S. history to be convicted of felony crimes. 

“This was a disgrace,” Trump said to the press outside of the courtroom after the verdict. “This was a rigged, disgraceful trial. The real verdict is gonna be on November 5, by the people.”

In the trial judged by 12 New Yorkers, which began on March 25, Trump was accused of illegally repaying his former fixer, Michael Cohen, for a hush money payment to adult film star Stormy Daniels before his election in 2016. Trump pleaded not guilty to all 34 counts. 

“Why should voters vote for a convicted felon?” one onlooker yelled as Trump stepped away from the press. 

A sentencing hearing has been scheduled by Justice Juan Merchan for July 11, and Trump could be facing probation or even prison time. 

marypp2@dailyillini.com

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After 14 years of internet stardom, the beloved dog behind the 2010 “doge” meme, Kabosu, passed at age 18 from a long fight with leukemia and liver disease. 

Kabosu’s owner, Atsuko Sato, released a statement on Friday on her Instagram announcing the death of the Shiba Inu.

“She went very peacefully without suffering,” Sato said in her post. “I am certain that Kabosu was the happiest dog in the world.” 

Kabosu began her battle with leukemia and liver disease in late 2022 after being adopted by Sato in 2008.

The doge meme originated from an image posted to Sato’s blog, which eventually spread to Reddit, an online social network. The photo soon became an internet sensation, making national headlines and even inspiring merchandise, such as sweatshirts and tapestries. 

The memes made out of the doge image featured colorful comic sans text depicting Kabosu’s thoughts.

In 2013, Kabosu’s impact still echoed throughout the internet, as software engineers Billy Markus and Jackson Palmer launched “Dogecoin,” a cryptocurrency, or alternative digital payment method.

The partners initially formed Dogecoin as a satirical cryptocurrency, though the concept was quickly popularized on Reddit forums and began being used as a tipping method. The currency quickly gained notoriety, gaining over one million visitors to the website in only one month, according to the Dogecoin site.

“Both Billy and Jackson thought that cryptocurrency was being taken far too seriously and wasn’t much fun,” the Dogecoin website explained.

Today, Dogecoin has a market capitalization of $23.65 billion according to crypto.com — which is the value of a traded company on the stock market — keeping Kabosu in the public eye. 

Lovers of the doge meme have taken to social media platforms such as TikTok, Instagram and Reddit to voice their condolences and mourn the death of the treasured dog. This has included reposting fan-favorite variations of the meme and even crafting new memes commemorating Kabosu’s legacy. This love has been received and met with gratitude from Kabosu’s owner.

Sato said in her Instagram statement, “I would like to express my deepest appreciation to everyone who has sent much love to us.”

aka10@dailyillini.com 

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The Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation has officially established Illinois’ first federally recognized tribal reservation, which includes 130 acres of land in Dekalb County that was put into trust for the Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation by the Department of the Interior. The tribal nation now has sovereignty over the land known as Shabbona Lake State Park. 

Tribal Chairman of the Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation Joseph “Zeke” Rupnick, explained the historical significance of the land to the nation and for his family. Rupnick is a direct descendent of Chief Shab-Eh-Nay — the Chief who signed the 1833 Treaty of Chicago among others.

The Treaty of Chicago was one of 44 treaties Prairie Band Potawatomi signed with the U.S. government and included the illegal sale of Native American land. “We ceded 5 million acres to the U.S. government,” Rupnick said. “Some of that land was earmarked for Prairie Band Potawatomi.”

Rupnick continued by explaining that when former President Andrew Jackson signed the Indian Removal Act, it involved the forced removal of all Native Americans living East of the Mississippi River. 

“We were rounded up at gunpoint and forced to leave, eventually making our way to Council Bluffs, Iowa,” Rupnick said. “In Iowa, we purchased land in Kansas with the money from the sale of that 5 million acres, a 30 by 30 mile reservation.”

Rupnick went into further detail about his personal connection to this announcement and his family’s history in advocating for native rights.

“This has been a fight that we’ve been fighting for the past 180 years,” Rupnick stated. “A majority of my family has been fighting this and, really, it was (in) the last 35 years when my mom was chairperson at that time (that we) really started petitioning the U.S congress to right this historical wrong.”

The sale from the Treaty of Chicago was ruled illegitimate following the Supreme Court’s 2020 Ruling in McGirt vs. Oklahoma, which was based on the 1796 Non-Intercourse Act. In section 12 of the Non-Intercourse Act, it states that “no purchase, grant … or other conveyance of lands … from any Indian, or nation or tribe of indians, within the bounds of the United States, shall be of any validity, in law or equity, unless the same be made by treaty, or convention, entered into, pursuant to the constitution.”

Rupnick continued by citing Article VI of the United States Constitution, which explains that all treaties entered into the authority of the U.S. government are the supreme law of the land. 

“The only way for a reservation to be disestablished or another reservation to be established is through an act of congress,” Rupnick said. “The Supreme Court ruled that unless Congress specifically disestablished a reservation, it still exists. So, with that argument, we applied for trust status on reservation in Illinois, because based on our research, that reservation was never disestablished in any treaty.”

Currently, there are non-tribal members residing on Potawatomi land. This situation is commonly referred to as “checkerboarding,” meaning that there are non tribal members living within the boundaries of the reservation. 

“We are willing to clear those individuals’ titles, because right now they have what is called a clouded title, because it is illegally sold land that is subject to Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation,” Rupnick said.

As of now, Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation has not established a plan for development on the land. 

“Our first priority was to secure the status of the land before we started seriously looking at developing anything on there,” Rupnick said. “We are just in the beginning stages of that, so hopefully that can steer us in the right direction of what we are going to be able to build that would benefit both the nation and the community.”

aceja4@dailyillini.com 

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Students for Justice in Palestine released a joint statement at 7 a.m. in conjunction with Faculty for Justice in Palestine. 

In the statement posted to their Instagram, SJP stated, “We have chosen to TEMPORARILY take down the encampment on our own terms.”

The members of the encampments began moving out supplies at approximately 12:30 a.m. this morning and taking down tents at 3 a.m.

SJP explained in the statement that the teach-ins and the overall experience “have done more to bring the walls down between the community and the University than the University has done in all of its initiatives and investments.”

SJP said the encampment — which they coined the “Popular University for Gaza” — created a general sense of community and solidarity. 

They also revisited the arrests made on April 26, referring to how Illinois State Attorney Julia Rietz had “expressed her intention to crack down on protesters.” 

They close out the statement by saying, “We will not stop until this University has severed ties from corporations that have contributed to the slaughter of over 40,000 innocent Palestinians, and most importantly, until Palestine is free.”

In a statement to The Daily Illini from the University, “the peaceful end to the prohibited encampment is helpful, and we look forward to a joyous conclusion to the semester for our graduates and visitors.”

After almost two weeks, the final tents were removed from the Main Quad around 8:40 a.m. this morning by Facilities & Services as well as members of the encampment. 

lezhava3@dailyillini.com 

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Representatives from the ongoing encampment on the south end of the Main Quad distributed a written statement to members of the press at around 5:16 p.m. Monday evening.

The statement, entitled “​​Students demand accountability from the University administration for their complicity in the genocide in Palestine and bad-faith negotiation tactics with protestors seeking divestment,” was four pages in length and gave a synopsis of the encampment beginning from its original establishment at the Alma Mater statue on Friday, April 26. 

The statement also outlined, from the protesters’ perspective, a negotiation meeting held between members of the encampment and Chancellor Robert Jones on Saturday, May 4.

According to the statement, the encampment, which was referred to as “the Popular University for Gaza,” was not established at its proposed location near Spurlock Museum in Urbana due to the presence of a police surveillance vehicle, which was not outlined in their agreement with University administration.

The statement also outlined the negotiations that took place between the evenings of Friday, April 26 and Sunday, April 28. According to a Massmail sent to members of the University community Friday evening, members of the encampment were set to negotiate with the administration on Monday afternoon, but the meeting was later canceled.

According to an April 27 interview with a protest organizer, the University later refused to meet with encampment members without prior dismantling of all structures on the Main Quad.

Protesters alleged in the statement that University administration assured encampment members multiple times that their commitment to holding a meeting the following Monday “was not contingent upon the dispersal of ongoing protests” during negotiations for the “temporary agreement” reached on Friday.

“Administration repeatedly went back on their word while simultaneously trying to villainize students who were peacefully protesting,” the statement said. “(Administration sent) a Massmail on April 28, while negotiations were still ongoing, stating that the student negotiators had ‘refused’ to meet with President Killeen and Chancellor Jones.” 

According to the statement, negotiations between protesters and the administration were nothing more than “performative acts on the administration’s behalf meant to thwart any progress that could have been made toward divestment.”

After several days of discussions with Associate Vice Chancellor Jim Hintz and other members of University administration, the protesters were ultimately able to secure a meeting with Chancellor Jones that did not require dismantling the encampment.

“Two stipulations remained: only those present during negotiations would be allowed to know about the meeting, and faculty representatives would not be allowed into the meeting as they had been previously,” the statement said. “This demand for confidentiality was a tactic to create unease and confusion across the camp and the larger Urbana-Champaign community.”

Following the death of Dr. Irfan Ahmad, assistant dean for research at Carle Illinois College of Medicine, Jones met with members of the encampment and was “welcoming” to the proposals brought forth by protesters.

According to the statement, Jones ultimately agreed to schedule a meeting on May 5 with James Moore, president and CEO of the University of Illinois Foundation where representatives from the encampment would “lay the foundation for an investment policy statement with a commitment to divest from companies that directly enable violations of international law and assaults on human rights.”

In the statement, organizers alleged that Jones arrived five minutes late to the scheduled 30-minute meeting and that he immediately informed protesters that the meeting was canceled.

The statement said Jones had “given the impression” that the meeting was for the purpose of negotiation, but that it was actually proposed in an effort to “(elevate) the lived experiences of the student organizers.”

Jones later told encampment representatives he would attempt one more time to schedule a meeting with President Tim Killeen, but also advised them that it was a “quality of good leaders to know how to deliver bad news to their constituents.”

Finally, the statement alleged that Jones “prioritized his own optics over the state of his campus, and his desire to not mirror the responses of UCLA and Columbia superseded his desire to create positive change.”

lisamc3@dailyillini.com

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At around 5 p.m. on Friday, a truck was parked on the southwest side of the Main Quad with images projected on each side of Israeli hostages taken on Oct. 7 by Hamas, the Palestinian political and militant organization that holds power across sections of the Gaza Strip.

According to Jonah Long, senior in Business, the truck was organized and paid for by groups of University alumni.

Long said the truck, which is visible from the encampment on the south end of the Main Quad, was not brought to campus as a form of counter protest. 

Protesters declined to comment on the truck and its placement between Lincoln and Gregory Halls.

According to Long, benefactors of the truck sought to bring awareness to antisemitism on campus and to remind the public of the Israeli hostages taken by Hamas.

“We want to bring attention to the number of hostages that are still being held by Hamas, kind of raising the awareness that they are still there,” Long said. “They still need our help to get freed.”

Long stated he and other Jewish students have experienced a rise in antisemitism in the months following Oct. 7. Long also said the encampment and other protests have made him and other Jewish students feel unsafe.

“When students have to walk past the encampment every day and hear antisemitic chants and signs, that is blatant hate speech,” Long said. “The US government identified and classified from the river to the sea as hate speech, which is a crime in this country.”

lisamc3@dailyillini.com

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