Chicago welcomed a new mayor on Monday as Brandon Johnson took the oath of office to chants of “CTU” and “SEIU.” Just in case anyone was confused about who would be running the city, those chants put any doubt to rest.
The Chicago Teachers Union (CTU) and the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) are the two most radical unions in the United States. The fact that Johnson used to be employed as an organizer for the CTU, and the SEIU was his biggest financial backer, does not bode well for those in the city hoping the new mayor would address current problems instead of creating more.
Johnson, who was once a big backer of the “Defund the Police” movement, ran the most radical-left campaign in Chicago history and promised to soak the rich, “rethink” policing, and “reinvest” in the city’s schools.
Never mind that big companies are already starting an exodus from the city because of Johnson’s promised massive tax increases. Police officers have been retiring at record rates and the city schools are already spending $9.4 billion, or about $29,400 each for 322,000 students. The result was a shocking and frightening 15% proficiency in math and 80% of Chicago students unable to read at grade level.
How is more money going to fix that?
Related: Half of Those Under 40 Have Witnessed a Shooting in Chicago at an Average Age of 14 Years Old
Johnson is an enemy of order and a friend to the forces of chaos. He made that clear while trying to compare the recent murder of a Chicago Police officer to the death of an armed teenager who was being pursued by a police officer.
“The tears of Adam Toledo’s parents are made of the same sorrow as those of Officer Preston’s parents,” he said.
He was referencing 24-year-old Chicago police officer Areanah Preston, who was tragically shot to death outside her South Side home on May 6 after returning from a night shift, and 13-year-old Adam Toledo, who was shot by a police officer while armed during a foot pursuit in March 2021.
The shooting of Toldeo was captured on police body cam that showed him being chased by the officer, who was heard telling the boy to “stop” and “stop right f—— now.” He stopped before turning toward the officer, at which point the cop told him to show his hands. Toledo appeared to have his hands up when he is shot at one time.
The footage appeared to show that Toledo dropped the gun he was holding before he was shot. After the shooting, the officer called over the radio for an ambulance and said, “Shots fired.”
Even the radical district attorney, Kim Foxx, couldn’t make a case against the officer who shot Toledo.
“After the single shot was fired, and Officer Stillman recognized Adam Toledo was no longer a threat, he immediately rendered aid and continued to do so until the assisting officers and the paramedics arrived,” Foxx said. “Based on the facts, the evidence, and the law, we’ve concluded that there was no evidence to prove that Officer Stillman acted with criminal intent.”
Toledo’s death was a tragedy. But the death of Officer Areanah Preston was cold-blooded murder.
The four suspects pulled up in a stolen vehicle as Officer Preston returned to her home in Avalon Park and ran toward her while armed, Carter said.
One of the suspects opened fire at Preston, who returned fire. One of the suspects stole Officer Preston’s gun before they fled in a stolen vehicle.
Prosecutors said she was shot both in the face and the neck, and they said Brooks has admitted to firing first.
A Shotspotter alert went out at 1:42 a.m., the time Preston was shot, but court documents said police didn’t immediately respond due to a “backlog in the district.”
How can anyone compare the tragic shooting of an armed individual fleeing police and a police officer trying to defend herself from violent criminals who shot her to death? It’s a gratuitous pander from Johnson to the Latino community, which had actually called for an end to foot pursuits in Latino neighborhoods after Toledo’s death.
Johnson’s regime will be tested early and often. With the summer months coming, the city becomes a shooting gallery where no one in any neighborhood is safe. My prediction is that by the 4th of July, the National Guard will be patrolling the city.
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