Sen. Tammy Duckworth; Mosque Bombing Suspects; McDonald’s Franchisees; Holiday Video And Board Games

On the 21st: McDonald’s franchise owners are nervous about whether they can still make money and they’re not happy with corporate leaders, either. Plus, if you’re still shopping for the holidays, we’ll give you some board game and video game suggestions. Also, three central Illinois men are appearing in court this week for trying to blow up a mosque in Minnesota. And as Minnesota Public Radio’s Matt Sepic tells us they’re now in trouble for a lot more than that. But first, it’s been another hectic week in Washington. And with the possibility of another government shutdown next week, we check in with Illinois Senator Tammy Duckworth.

As we enter this last formal week of scheduled Senate session in Washington, we’ve got yet another government shutdown looming. We’ve been checking in on our Senate delegation in DC this week - on Tuesday, we spoke with Senator Dick Durbin.

Today, we spoke with Senator Tammy Duckworth about a range of issues from the bipartisan sentiment about a possible government shutdown to FEMA's response to natural disasters ins small communities.

Plus --

This past summer, three central Illinois men were indicted by a grand jury for detonating a bomb at Dar Al Farooq Islamic Center in Bloomington, Minnesota last year.

Nobody was hurt by the blast, but it did do a lot of damage to the building. And this week, two of the men are finally appearing in court for the first time - in Minnesota, where part of the case was just moved from Illinois. Michael Hari, Michael McWhorter, and Joe Morris have been involved with various charges involving conspiracy, robbing, arson, and assault.

Along the way, this story has also gotten a lot more complicated. And Matt Sepic joined us to simplify it. Matt has been following the case for Minnesota Public Radio.

And --

Yesterday and today, more than a thousand McDonald’s franchise owners are meeting in Dallas to discuss the rising cost of labor, rent and goods. These costs are making them nervous about the future of the franchises they own. And now, they’re part of a newly formed group called the National Owners Association which was created back in October.

So what are their main concerns - and what have we heard from higher-ups at the Illinois-based fast food giant?

Brigid Sweeney has been reporting on this for Crain’s Chicago Business and she joined us on the line from Chicago.

Erik Gordon also joined us. Erik is a Clinical Assistant Professor in the Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan.

Also --

How’s your holiday shopping going this year? Even when you think you might be done, there’s always the problem of what to get the teenagers. They’re a tough crowd.

But, they’re big gamers. And If there’s a gamer in your life - or maybe you’re one yourself - there are an overwhelming number of options to choose from.

We ended the hour with some gift suggestions for video games and board games - whether you’re buying something for a loved one, for yourself - or, just for something to do with family over the holidays.

First, we spoke Christian Matlock about video games. He's a former esports head coach at Illinois College in Jacksonville - he now works for an e-sports company in Texas. And he’s taken some time away from the pro scene to help us out.

Then, Rick Keehn joined us on the line to talk about board games. He’s from Evanston just north of Chicago, and he works as an board game event coordinator. Rick also runs his own board gaming blog.