Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson pushing liberal agenda through City Council
Rachel Schilke
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Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson has been pushing his progressive agenda through the City Council since he entered the office in May, addressing several hot-button issues that have drawn scrutiny.
During his mayoral campaign, Johnson pitched comprehensive reform in several areas, including rising crime and declining education — two policy areas Democrats face criticism for across the country. Chicago, in particular, is suffering from a rise in juvenile crime and homelessness due to a variety of factors, including a heavy immigration influx from the southern border.
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On Wednesday, the City Council approved resolutions to hold hearings on mental health responses and homelessness. One hearing, titled “Treatment Not Trauma,” would help the Chicago Police Department respond to mental health crises, a pillar in the Democratic criminal justice restructuring agenda. Another hearing is called “Bring Chicago Home,” which would work to alleviate homelessness using funds from the real estate transfer tax for properties that sell for $1 million or more.
Council members also approved transforming a motel into a housing and social services site for homeless people struggling with mental health and substance abuse.
Johnson has also handpicked members for the school board that align with Johnson’s campaign platform to restructure the education system.
During his campaign, Johnson had pledged to address education through needs-based funding and expand partnerships with city colleges and trade schools. He also plans to create a program with the city transit system to provide free transportation to schools for the city’s youth.
Perhaps the most controversial move in Johnson’s tenure so far has been decisions related to illegal immigration in Chicago. In May, the City Council voted to allocate $51 million of the city’s budget surplus to create housing for immigrants and asylum-seekers bused to the Windy City from Texas. Republicans have staunchly argued that the remaining budget should not be spent on immigrant housing.
Currently, immigrants who arrive by bus in Chicago are put up in police station lobbies and large concrete shelters, the former of which is becoming a point of contention between Johnson and the city’s law enforcement. The two already started off on rocky footing after most police unions and the Fraternal Order of Police overwhelmingly backed mayoral candidate Paul Vallas, a centrist Democrat who wanted to focus on traditional approaches to education and crime.
The police unions believed that Johnson would be a carbon copy of former Mayor Lori Lightfoot, who saw more than 1,000 officers leave the force under her tenure.
Now, Johnson is faced with a significant challenge: Choosing Chicago’s next police superintendent. The mayor will have to tread lightly as he picks one of the three finalists to take over a position that has been a revolving door over the last few months.
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Of the three finalists, Shon Barnes, Angel Novalez, and Larry Snelling, Barnes and Novalez appear to align with Johnson’s agenda the most. Both men have experience in creating community-based policing strategies and focusing on police accountability throughout their tenures. Novalez served as deputy chief in the Office of Constitutional Policing and Reform during the summer of 2020, the height of the Black Lives Matter movement after George Floyd was killed by police in Minneapolis.
Johnson will need to decide whether he wants to risk further icy relations with Chicago’s law enforcement or face backlash from the community as he picks his candidate for the job. The City Council ultimately has the final say, but it is likely whoever Johnson picks will have an easy confirmation.