Commuters braced for the evening rush hour after the first wave of a major winter storm made a mess of the morning and forced the cancellation of more than 500 flights at the city's two airports. Forecasters predicted heavier snow this afternoon.

The snowstorm nailing the Chicago area Tuesday is triggering major cancellations and long delays at Chicago's O'Hare and Midway Airports.

Democratic Party leaders began the delicate dance of picking a new running mate for Gov. Pat Quinn today, while emphasizing there was no horse-trading involved to get a scandal-ridden Chicago pawnbroker to abandon the primary nomination for lieutenant governor.

The Chicago Transit Authority and its unions have agreed to possible meetings later this week to try to end service cuts.

United Airlines is issuing a travel waiver because of the expected snow for flights traveling to, from or through Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, and Wisconsin on Feb. 9 and 10, 2010. In order to be eligible for the waiver, you must have purchased your tickets on or before Feb. 8, 2010.

Mayor Daley says the Chicago City Council needs an ethics watchdog.