Mayor could enjoy a big Trump bump
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Mayor Brandon Johnson with some of his top staffers, including budget director Annette Guzman (left), counsel Mary Richardson-Lowry and deputy mayor Garien Gatewood. Photo: Monica Eng/Axios
While New York Mayor Eric Adams has been cooperating with the Trump administration, Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson is leaning into fights with the White House.
Why it matters: Johnson has long criticized President Trump, but his recent rhetoric has hit a new fevered pitch that could actually help him rebound from a midterm slump.
Driving the news: Responding to a question about Trump's investigation of Johnson's hiring practices, the mayor last week quipped, "This is not a surprise. [Trump]'s a monster, period."
- The comment offered Johnson's starkest assessment of the president to date, but also echoed a sentiment likely felt by many who helped elect the mayor.
Flashback: Former Mayor Lori Lightfoot scored many of her biggest political points while sparring with Trump during the pandemic, and more recently, Gov. JB Pritzker earned Democratic kudos across the nation for his fiery anti-Trump speech in New Hampshire.
What they're saying: "One of the things Johnson needs to do [to revive his popularity] is to pick an enemy and Trump is the logical one," former alder and UIC political science professor Dick Simpson told Axios a week before the "monster" comment.
- "This would let him represent the people of Chicago against this image of an ogre in Washington."
The irony: Last week's letter from the U.S. Department of Justice suggesting that Johnson favors Black hires in his administration could be just the bump the mayor needs to shore up lagging support in the Black community and broadcast his efforts toward greater equity in representation.
Reality check: Despite the letter's accusation of hiring bias, Johnson's staff roughly reflects the demographics of the city, albeit with enhanced Black representation.
The other side: When Axios asked a DOJ spokesperson for a reaction to the potential upside of the investigation for Johnson, she answered: "No comment."
The intrigue: The DOJ says it mailed Johnson notice of the investigation last week, but last Wednesday, Chicago's top lawyer Mary Richardson-Lowry said her office had, so far, only heard about the investigation on social media.
- "We will respond once we receive it formally and review it accordingly," she said.
The bottom line: While a Trump fight could help Johnson rebuild support, Simpson stressed that it must be paired with "actually accomplishing things in an efficient and effective manner … Announcing housing plans is different from actually adding the kind of affordable housing the city needs."