Photo by Maritza #2, different from the Maritza that appeared in my other blog.
Community policing reduced homicide and crime in Chicago in the past. Paul Vallas was part of that, and now, after spending time with my candidate and hearing his plans and motivation in greater detail than a vast majority of voters can tolerate, I have good reason to think Chicago united with Mayor Paul Vallas can have the best version of community policing and be the safest city in the country. The answer isn’t left, right, or center solutions, it’s combining the best versions of all of those being managed by the budgetary discipline of Paul Vallas. The alternative is a candidate who has repeatedly lied about his plans for the Chicago Police and his vast array of tax plans that will hurt everyone and likely push Chicago from the tipping point into an economic nose-dive.
Brandon Johnson is a class warrior supported by my comrades in the Democratic Socialists of America. They are launching their revolution in a city that depends on private investment, corporate jobs, conventions, tourists, professional sports, and world class restaurants. Like it or not, Illinois has a billionaire Democratic Governor. Speaking as someone that has been a card-carrying Democratic Socialist for over 37 years, this city and the Brandon Johnson coalition are not a good fit. Crime is impacting the economy and if getting rid of the cops was part of the solution, the under-staffed CPD would be producing better results for the Chicago Commune, instead of just making half the riders too scared on the EL and most former riders opting to remain former riders. Let’s shake that empty fare box and shout slogans and idealistic goals at it and see if the budget magically grows. Even Richard M Daley buying the magic bean turned out to generate more revenue than anything Elgin Branding Brandon is likely to come up with.
The Mayor of Chicago will need to collaborate with the Governor, a diverse Chicago city council and the moderate democratic super majority in Springfield. Paul Vallas is more closely aligned to the moderates than Johnson. Like it or not, you cannot have reform without collaboration. Johnson blaming unsolved problems and broken promises on his enemies will not be a fun thing to watch while the city implodes.
Paul Vallas has a winning message to unite the city: Public Safety and Holding The Line on Taxes.But wait, there’s more…
We need CPD on the EL, on regular beats in the communities, in the parks, and we ought to build the next generation of CPD from the neighborhoods for the neighborhoods. Vallas wants all that and knows how to do it.
My Defund the Police comrades insist more police is more fascism and more heads getting busted open. That’s fine for protest politics people who don’t manage a city, but a Chicago Mayor with that kind of contempt for police officers that risk their lives for the city is unacceptable to me. Under Johnson I expect we will lose a lot of experienced cops who also find it unacceptable.
Tearing down yard signs is old school Chicago politics kid stuff that had gone out of style, but it has been passionately brought back by the Johnson campaign.
Some people in the Johnson camp are openly celebrating the possibility of an already understaffed CPD being more understaffed under Johnson.
Most of the comrades are not cop haters but a few of them are not too shy or ashamed to celebrate when cops get killed. Brandon Johnson condemns a moderate Democrat getting votes from Republicans that want public safety and don’t want higher taxes, but Brandon Johnson is not turning away any support from people that say “There is no such thing as a good cop.”
Johnson went from strongly advocating #DefundThePolice to saying he would cut well over 100 million from the police budget and leave 1100 vacancies in the ranks.
Until a few days ago,Brandon Johnson advocated a Defund The Police agenda as candidate for Mayor while claiming he did not support Defunding the Police. There’s proof, right there, that Brandon Johnson plays fast and loose with the truth.
Brandon Johnson is the Black Trump in this race and he’s getting away with it. Remember, Brandon Johnson said Barack Obama is a Republican, too. It’s a Bernie Bro position I’ve expressed in a more nuanced way, but stated bluntly, it’s a lie. It sets a terrible example for the kids. Pretending Obama did nothing good is the sort of thing Donald Trump did when he systematically rolled those things back.
Brandon Johnson disrespects Barack Obama, just like Trump, and he does the same thing to Paul Vallas, because an honest comparison between the two leaves Brandon at the County Board fetching Toni Preckwinkle’s coffee or defunding the Sheriff’s office like he did.
If Brandon Johnson had the ability to cut through waste and corruption to fund political reform he would have done it already at the Cook County Board.
Brandon Johnson’s four years with seventh and eighth graders must’ve made him a little too comfortable thinking he was the smartest guy in the room. Now, after entering the race a Defund The Police hero, lying about that while pushing Defund The Police agenda, he says not a penny comes out.
Brandon Johnson, Cook County Commissioner with a six figure CTU organizer salary and a 1 million dollar double pension is not the progressive champion he appears to be.
Let’s be kind and just say Brandon Johnson is being less than his best self. He walked back one of his core beliefs in order to get elected and he walked back his tax plans in order to get elected. Was he lying to the anti-cop comrades when he stood for Defund The Police or is he lying to moderates and everyone else when he walks it all back?
He’s definitely lying to one group of Chicagoans when he shouldn’t be lying to any of us.
This is a personal blog to answer friends that don’t understand why I support the best qualified candidate. This is a rogue production and it is not endorsed by any campaign, candidate, or committee.
Adam Broad 