CHICAGO | Politics and Current Events

[ithakas]

It's strange that neither Arne Duncan, Mike Quigley or Bill Daley even ran last time. Perhaps they didn't want to have the reins while Covid funding fell off?

[ardecila]

Being mayor is an utterly thankless job with very little upside. I'm not surprised that big names have stayed far far away.

If you have a good reputation, a stint on the 5th floor will sink it. If you need to build a reputation, it's a terrible place to start. You have to own all of the dysfunction that the city has accumulated over the last century thanks to the machine, but you have very little power to fix anything since growth and tax revenues are anemic. You cannot go onto statewide or national office. Etc etc.

Even Rahm Emanuel, who did a great job as mayor, got sucked down by it and had nowhere to go afterwards except a powerless ambassadorship appointment.

Note this is true of mayors generally, NYC has not had any mayors go on to higher office either in a very long time. But NYC has lots of diverse political factions, and lots of independently wealthy folks who have a Bruce Wayne complex and don't necessarily care about higher office.

[Halsted & Villagio]

Originally Posted by ardecila

Being mayor is an utterly thankless job with very little upside. I'm not surprised that big names have stayed far far away.

If you have a good reputation, a stint on the 5th floor will sink it. If you need to build a reputation, it's a terrible place to start. You have to own all of the dysfunction that the city has accumulated over the last century thanks to the machine, but you have very little power to fix anything since growth and tax revenues are anemic. You cannot go onto statewide or national office. Etc etc.

Even Rahm Emanuel, who did a great job as mayor, got sucked down by it and had nowhere to go afterwards except a powerless ambassadorship appointment.

Note this is true of mayors generally, NYC has not had any mayors go on to higher office either in a very long time. But NYC has lots of diverse political factions, and lots of independently wealthy folks who have a Bruce Wayne complex and don't necessarily care about higher office.

Was Rahm really a good mayor? Or did he benefit from a pre-Covid world and his connections to Barack Obama. During those days practically ALL the guys - every single one of them - that were connected to the Obama administration rode the fast train to uber success in private/public life, including politics.

As a lifelong INDEPENDENT I can take this view and look at him with a fair, objective and relative non-biased eye.

Moreover, I submit that a credible argument can be made that ANY MAYOR who caters to one group/one sector/one part of the city over other parts, by definition, cannot be categorized as a "good mayor".

Moving on.... mayors today (particularly in big cities) have a much more difficult job in a post-covid world/with the influx of migrants/Maga nuts/polarized politics devoid of reason... and with respect to Brandon Johnson - cleaning up the mess left by Rahm due to backlash in certain communities, resulting rising crime from being overlooked/neglected, etc.

In short, Rahm created some of the major problems Brandon Johnson is now faced with.

That said, if I had to rank the job that Brandon Johnson is doing... looking at it fairly and objectively... I would rank him at somewhere around average to below average.... leaning more in the direction of below average.

He does get a major feather in his cap for slowing violent crime and murders in the city. As someone who travels quite a bit I have distinctly noticed that crime and Chicago is not something I hear nearly as often being talked about -- on the news or while out and about -- during my travels. He is doing something right with respect to this and he deserves credit. That said, this does not change my view that he has to start stepping it up with tangible results -- he gets a below average from me AT THIS POINT in his administration.

https://abc7chicago.com/chicago-viol...rime/14241408/

However, it is still somewhat early. And I do see the vision for what he is trying to do and I know that many of his plans are more long term and will not result in quick resolutions. But today's world does not wait -- we want what we want NOW and most do not have the patience or vision to wait for what may or may not come in the future.

Long story short -- Brandon Johnson has faced, and continues to face, ENORMOUS challenges -- a good chunk of those challenges he needs to change from "potential" resolutions that he is working to resolve.... into resolutions that have fixed the problem -- past tense.

He needs to start putting more W's on the scoreboard.

[VivaLFuego]

Originally Posted by Halsted & Villagio

Was Rahm really a good mayor? Or did he benefit from a pre-Covid world and his connections to Barack Obama. During those days practically ALL the guys - every single one of them - that were connected to the Obama administration rode the fast train to uber success in private/public life, including politics.

You say this as though access and reputation aren't part of being a good mayor - in contrast to say, taking an unnecessary vote to publicly disavow yourself and your city from the official foreign policy of the nation set by the head of your national party on whom you're counting on for help propping up your budget and planned spending.

Of course, mayor of Chicago was not a successful move for Rahm. Instead of heading back to DC as Secretary of Transportation he had to get exiled to Japan because of the political capital he expended taking on the teachers.

While of course not perfect by any means, Rahm provided some reason for optimism that Chicago could be an outlier in an otherwise bleak Rust Belt/IL/Midwest future, between strong professional corporate recruitment and taking real steps to bend the arc on the structural financial issues that will otherwise bankrupt the city - passing the major property tax ramp to increase pension contributions, closing CPS schools, etc. Other than the post-McDonald/Van Dyke spike in 2016-2017, his tenure maintained the low modern era homicide rates, which remainded low as of 2019 when he handed off the reins. He also set up the financial frameworks to more directly transfer money from downtown development fees to subsidize development elsewhere beyond what was possible with Daley's TIFs, i.e. enabling "Invest South/West" to even exist.

No doubt the Covid era would have resulted in challenges and backsliding regardless, but the lack of attention or passion from Lori or BJ on things Rahm valued has been palpable: O'Hare Modernization, the CTA, downtown livability, recruiting deep pockets to help in tangible ways -remember when he got Ken Griffin to pay to double-up the lakefront trail?, keeping the CTU at bay from its relentless quest to strangle the city, etc.

At least Lori tried a bit on the last one, but eventually caved on the things that mattered like the elected school board.

[moorhosj1]

Waiting for the local media to pick up on it, but based on CPD data crime is down pretty significantly so far this year. Before any tries to mention cold weather, we are currently in the 2nd warmest winter on record.

• The YTD numbers have all crime down 15%.
• Murder is down 30% (from 56 -> 39) and shootings are down 26% (228 -> 169).
• Vehicle Theft is down 31% (3,677 -> 2,530), which is still historically high.
• Aggravated Battery is actually up 4% (577 -> 599)
• Burglary is down 12% (904 -> 794)
• 5-year comparison shows we are still above 2020 levels in Robbery, Theft, and Motor Vehicle Theft. Other measures are all down.

[Vlajos]

Originally Posted by VivaLFuego

You say this as though access and reputation aren't part of being a good mayor - in contrast to say, taking an unnecessary vote to publicly disavow yourself and your city from the official foreign policy of the nation set by the head of your national party on whom you're counting on for help propping up your budget and planned spending.

Of course, mayor of Chicago was not a successful move for Rahm. Instead of heading back to DC as Secretary of Transportation he had to get exiled to Japan because of the political capital he expended taking on the teachers.

While of course not perfect by any means, Rahm provided some reason for optimism that Chicago could be an outlier in an otherwise bleak Rust Belt/IL/Midwest future, between strong professional corporate recruitment and taking real steps to bend the arc on the structural financial issues that will otherwise bankrupt the city - passing the major property tax ramp to increase pension contributions, closing CPS schools, etc. Other than the post-McDonald/Van Dyke spike in 2016-2017, his tenure maintained the low modern era homicide rates, which remainded low as of 2019 when he handed off the reins. He also set up the financial frameworks to more directly transfer money from downtown development fees to subsidize development elsewhere beyond what was possible with Daley's TIFs, i.e. enabling "Invest South/West" to even exist.

No doubt the Covid era would have resulted in challenges and backsliding regardless, but the lack of attention or passion from Lori or BJ on things Rahm valued has been palpable: O'Hare Modernization, the CTA, downtown livability, recruiting deep pockets to help in tangible ways -remember when he got Ken Griffin to pay to double-up the lakefront trail?, keeping the CTU at bay from its relentless quest to strangle the city, etc.

At least Lori tried a bit on the last one, but eventually caved on the things that mattered like the elected school board.

Fantastic post, could not agree more.

[LouisVanDerWright]

Originally Posted by VivaLFuego

You say this as though access and reputation aren't part of being a good mayor - in contrast to say, taking an unnecessary vote to publicly disavow yourself and your city from the official foreign policy of the nation set by the head of your national party on whom you're counting on for help propping up your budget and planned spending.

Of course, mayor of Chicago was not a successful move for Rahm. Instead of heading back to DC as Secretary of Transportation he had to get exiled to Japan because of the political capital he expended taking on the teachers.

While of course not perfect by any means, Rahm provided some reason for optimism that Chicago could be an outlier in an otherwise bleak Rust Belt/IL/Midwest future, between strong professional corporate recruitment and taking real steps to bend the arc on the structural financial issues that will otherwise bankrupt the city - passing the major property tax ramp to increase pension contributions, closing CPS schools, etc. Other than the post-McDonald/Van Dyke spike in 2016-2017, his tenure maintained the low modern era homicide rates, which remainded low as of 2019 when he handed off the reins. He also set up the financial frameworks to more directly transfer money from downtown development fees to subsidize development elsewhere beyond what was possible with Daley's TIFs, i.e. enabling "Invest South/West" to even exist.

No doubt the Covid era would have resulted in challenges and backsliding regardless, but the lack of attention or passion from Lori or BJ on things Rahm valued has been palpable: O'Hare Modernization, the CTA, downtown livability, recruiting deep pockets to help in tangible ways -remember when he got Ken Griffin to pay to double-up the lakefront trail?, keeping the CTU at bay from its relentless quest to strangle the city, etc.

At least Lori tried a bit on the last one, but eventually caved on the things that mattered like the elected school board.

Exiled to Japan? You mean sent to Asia to be ambassador to one of the US' closest allies and keep tabs on our #1 advisary China? You mean sent to Asia to fill the only gap left on his resume to be able to run for president?

Rahm is in Japan because the Democratic Party needs him to have foreign affairs experience before he can run for President. It's really that simple. His tenure in Chicago was a resounding success and the subsequent jokers only make him look even better.

[west-town-brad]

Originally Posted by LouisVanDerWright

Exiled to Japan? You mean sent to Asia to be ambassador to one of the US' closest allies and keep tabs on our #1 advisary China? You mean sent to Asia to fill the only gap left on his resume to be able to run for president?

Rahm is in Japan because the Democratic Party needs him to have foreign affairs experience before he can run for President. It's really that simple. His tenure in Chicago was a resounding success and the subsequent jokers only make him look even better.

I like Rahm. He not gonna be President.

[ardecila]

Transpo Secretary has been unofficially reserved as a "minority" slot for many years, even in Republican administrations. Excluding interim appointments/acting secretaries, the last straight cis white man to hold the job was in 1993.

Rahm is Jewish, but I'm not sure that counts... granted, rules are meant to be broken and it did seem like Biden was ready to appoint Rahm before progressives screamed at him.

[ebitdadada]

Echoing what some others have been noticing but in graph form (Thanks to marothisu for pointing me to the data a while back). There seems to be a very positive trend in homicides that started ~July 2023 with numbers reverting to pre-pandemic levels (with maybe even some hope of it falling below that level if trends continue). February 2024 has been trending significantly below 2023 as well.

I'm no expert but my guess is homicide data is likely the most accurate dataset (i.e. less likely to be underreporting or data discrepancy issues (assuming that's even a real thing) and could be a leading indicator of overall crime (which seems to have started to fall as well).

Chicago Homicides by Month & Year: Graph


Chicago Homicides by Month & Year: Numbers


Methodology & Source here in case anyone has any other insights.
- Source: https://data.cityofchicago.org/Publi...ijzp-q8t2/data
- Filters: Primary Type = Homicide, Exclude Involuntary Manslaughter

[Steely Dan]

Mayor Brandon Johnson, his message, and the media: Time for a course correction before public loses faith


In an apparent effort to turn things around, Johnson scheduled a meeting with the Chicago Sun-Times editorial board this week that would have been his first.

But Monday’s meeting ended abruptly — after Johnson and board members had introduced themselves — when press secretary Ronnie Reese insisted the entire session be off the record. Editorial Page editor Lorraine Forte refused to accept those unprecedented terms. Johnson allowed Reese to make the argument for him and never said a word before signing off from the Zoom session.

The relationship between the mayor and the messengers looked like it had nowhere to go but up after Lori Lightfoot, who engaged in verbal combat with the City Hall press corps, threatened to go around them and made national headlines by confining her midterm interviews to reporters of color.

In contrast, the likable Johnson seemed like a candidate for Mr. Congenialty. But Johnson appears to have quickly exhausted the bank of goodwill.

full article: https://chicago.suntimes.com/brandon...ence-questions




this man........... this was not a man ready to meet the challenge..........

swing and a miss once again, chicago.

#anotherterriblemayor

[twister244]

Well..... When people finally realize we need to vote for leaders based on merit and policy positions, then maybe we will elect someone competent.

Paul Vallas may have leaned conservative.... Wasn't a person of color, etc, but he was the better choice over Johnson.

But that's not how we vote nowadays.

[skysoar]

Originally Posted by twister244

Well..... When people finally realize we need to vote for leaders based on merit and policy positions, then maybe we will elect someone competent.

Paul Vallas may have leaned conservative.... Wasn't a person of color, etc, but he was the better choice over Johnson.

But that's not how we vote nowadays.

Believe it or not many people of color voted for Vallas. My biggest surprise were how many white voters voted for Brandon Johnson. The guy is an empty suit, with very few leadership abilities, but here we all find ourselves burdened with him for the next several years. We can only hope, but Chicago will survive, but at what cost, God only knows.

[twister244]

Originally Posted by skysoar

Believe it or not many people of color voted for Vallas. My biggest surprise were how many white voters voted for Brandon Johnson. The guy is an empty suit, with very few leadership abilities, but here we all find ourselves burdened with him for the next several years. We can only hope, but Chicago will survive, but at what cost, God only knows.

I totally believe that......

I absolutely see many people of color in the city looking at someone like Johnson and rolling their eyes collectively - Which is a good thing. It's insulated North Side young voters that live in their echo chambers that some of the voters I am referring to.

[Klippenstein]

Paul Vallas or anybody flirting with the republican party like he did was never going to be mayor of Chicago no matter how close he came. Moderate Chicagoans need to bring a better candidate if they are going to try to beat the union backed candidates. It's as simple that.

[Klippenstein]

Btw, is venting about the mayor and the press not playing nice with each other what passes as political news these days?

Here's some real news.

Mayor’s $1.25 Billion Affordable Housing Plan Would Mean The End Of TIF Districts


The $1.25 billion in bonds would be split evenly at $625 million for both the city’s Department of Housing and the Department of Planning and Development.

The Department of Housing would use $360-390 million for the construction and preservation of affordable rental homes, $210-240 million for the construction and preservation of homeownership and $20-30 million for the preservation of single-room occupancy structures, according to the proposal.

The Department of Planning and Development would use $400-500 million for neighborhood development grants, $82.5-115 million for small business support and $57.5-90 million for jobs and workforce training.

[twister244]

Am I going crazy, or were there posts related to the oil company lawsuit deleted from the economics thread? Maybe they were meant to be moved here since it's more political-related?

[Kngkyle]

Early results show the real estate transfer tax not passing - 56% no and 44% yes with 575 of 1291 precincts reporting. Bullet potentially dodged.

[Steely Dan]

This is nerve-wrackin watching the results trickle in.

On the cusp of killing the real estate transfer tax AND possibly also getting a states attorney who might actually give a slight shit about holding criminals accountable for their crimes!


If that holds, color me shocked, Chicagoland.

But we're still only at 80% and 83% results in, and the states attorney race is razor thin.

[twister244]

Yeah, I'm actually really happy at seeing these results. I was half-expecting the real estate tax to actually pass......

Definitely an interesting result if it's struck down, and I will be interested to see how the vote ultimately broke down.