It's like a harmonic convergence of progressive villains. Rachel Hinton of the Chicago Sun-Times reports:

A political action committee founded by liberal billionaire philanthropist — and Donald Trump nemesis — George Soros kicked $2 million to a committee supporting Cook County State's Attorney Kim Foxx in her re-election bid against three Democratic primary challengers. A mega donor to Democrats and liberal causes, the hedge fund operator’s Democracy PAC transferred $2 million into the Illinois Justice and Public Safety PAC on Wednesday.



Kim Foxx in 2018 (YouTube screen grab).

By law, a PAC that receives large donations and supports a candidate cannot coordinate with that candidate. So Foxx is not directly receiving the money from Soros, but Soros cash is being dedicated to her re-election as state's attorney. A re-election that would ratify the cronyism that allowed Jussie Smollett to escape prosecution when Foxx's office declined to pursue charges against him for staging a fake hate crime and tying up substantial police resources needed elsewhere in the crime-ridden Windy City.

Foxx claimed to recuse herself for "familiarity with potential witnesses" but declined to appoint a special prosecutor, as required when a conflict of interest is present. Instead, she had a subordinate under her direct control take over the case, and that led to the prosecution being declined. Following a public firestorm, including denunciation by Chicago's chief of police, a special prosecutor was appointed to pursue the case and investigate Foxx.

Now Foxx faces a primary election on March 17 and is adopting a penitent pose. Mark Guarino reports for the WaPo:

In the middle of a video announcing her reelection campaign, Cook County State's Attorney Kim Foxx did something few Chicago politicians do: She admitted fault. Foxx had been criticized by President Trump, the Fraternal Order of Police and many Chicagoans for her office's decision in March to drop all 16 felony disorderly conduct charges against actor Jussie Smollett, who police say staged a racist and homophobic attack involving two men with a noose. Then-Mayor Rahm Emanuel (D) called Foxx's decision "a whitewash of justice." Trump characterized it as "a real big scam." "Truth is, I didn't handle it well. I own that," Foxx (D) said in her two-minute video.

She faces three opponents in the Democrat primary, including one, Bill Conway, with a billionaire father. From the Sun-Times article above:

Conway's campaign coffers have been bolstered by donations from his dad, William E. Conway Jr., one of the founders of the private equity firm the Carlyle Group. More than 88% of the challenger's total warchest came from his dad, the Sun-Times found last month. The senior Conway has a net worth of $3.5 billion, according to Forbes.

A poll released two days ago has Foxx and Conway tied at 26% support among Democrats, with the two other challengers getting a total of 10% and 36% undecided. No doubt, the Soros millions will be a big help in a last-minute push by Foxx to grab those undecided votes.

Foxx is the progressives' choice, favoring all the soft-on-crime initiatives currently all the rage on the Left, as the Chicago Crusader reports:

United Working Families, Real Justice PAC, the Chicago Federation of Labor, Personal PAC, and the Wheeling Township of Democrats have all endorsed Foxx, the first Black female Cook County State's Attorney who is seeking a second term in office. (snip) United Working Families Executive Director Emma Tai said in a statement, "As Cook County State's Attorney, Kim Foxx has fought tirelessly against the root causes of violence and mass incarceration. She has exonerated 80 wrongful convictions, reduced prosecution of low-level offenses, and worked to expunge over 1,000 low-level possession convictions. These measures are essential to undoing the racist legacy and continued harm to communities of color under the failed War on Drugs." Real Justice PAC said, "Kim championed alternatives to incarceration and expunged tens of thousands of marijuana convictions. The number of people sentenced to jail or prison dropped by 20 percent. Her record speaks for itself. She is the reformer that Chicago needs." Chicago Federation of Labor President Bob Reiter said in a statement: "The Chicago Federation of Labor is proud to endorse State's Attorney Kim Foxx in her campaign for re-election. While there is still much work to be done to help lift up communities that face social inequity, Kim has worked tirelessly towards making sure our criminal justice system works for everyone." "The only way we can continue our work to protect women's rights is with progressive-minded elected officials by our side. Kim Foxx is that elected official that we can count on," said Personal PAC President and CEO Terry Cosgrove in a statement. "She is a warrior for women and part of the Personal PAC community. We proudly support her bid for re-election." Wheeling Township Democrats: "State's Attorney Kim Foxx has been a leader, and national example, of what real criminal justice reform looks like. She delivers true justice and equity to Cook County families and we know she will continue to do that work for the next four years. We're proud to join her in this re-election campaign and provide our endorsement," said Representative Mark Walker, committeeman for Wheeling Township Democrats.

Soros's late entrance into funding Foxx must indicate worry that Chicago could actually turn sensible in the wake of the Smollett fiasco.

Hat tip: Peter von Buol