Chicago is a mess these days.
Violent crime is rampant, with robbery and vehicle theft up 30% in 2023.
Homicides are down, but 625 deaths are still 50% more than just a decade ago.
Meanwhile, businesses in the city are forced to endure the nation’s highest commercial property taxes, which increased by 93% from 2012 to 2022.
Not to mention, the city’s social services have been pushed to the brink since the influx of tens of thousands of illegal migrants.
To cope with this population surge, leaders have been forced to transform airports and police stations into makeshift shelters, diverting over $300 million of taxpayer funds to provide housing and healthcare for these unexpected arrivals.
No wonder many long-term residents have given up and left Chicago, which has lost 3% of its population since 2020.
With so many problems facing the city, one would think that Mayor Brandon Johnson would have enough to keep him awake at night.
Instead, Johnson has made it his mission to combat another plague in The Windy City: the lingering presence of . . . George Washington.
Yes, you read that right.
The father of our nation, the guy on our currency, the namesake of our nation’s capital, is now Chicago’s newest Public Enemy number one.
Forget about the spike in crime or shrinking tax base, the bronze statue of Washington in City Hall, a fixture since 1984, must go!
According to Johnson, the drive to evict Washington has nothing to do with the fact that Washington owned slaves.
Johnson’s Communications Director, Ronnie Reese, doubled down on this sentiment, noting that Johnson is only "freshening up the space" and suggested that figures like Ida B. Wells or Harold Washington would be ideal replacements.
Johnson is free to replace Washington with whomever he deems fit.
He was elected as the city’s chief executive, and if he thinks it’s time to refurbish city hall, he’s well within his right to do so.
That’s not the problem here.
The issue is whether removing Washington is an ideal use of taxpayer resources when Chicago faces an existential crisis mostly due to policies imposed by Johnson’s administration.
Just look at the current state of the city’s school system.
Chicago Public Schools (CPS) boast some of the nation’s lowest reading and math proficiency levels. Approximately 20% of elementary students read at their proper grade levels, while only 15% are considered proficient in math.
Things only marginally improve for high school students, with 21% of the student population considered proficient in reading and math.
With an operating budget of nearly $8.5 billion, which translates into a whopping $26,356 per pupil, Chicago’s student performance remains well below average on the national scale.
Then there’s the city’s massive debt, which Johnson has only expanded since taking office in 2023.
Facing a $538 million budget shortfall, Chicago currently uses over 80% of property taxes collected to pay down the city’s pension debt.
And Chicago’s pension debt is $48 billion, more than 44 other states combined!
Johnson also has the tall task of attracting more businesses to the city.
With stats like those listed above, it’s easy to see why several major companies, including Tyson Foods, Boeing and Citadel, decided to leave the Windy City for good, and several more are considering similar moves.
Johnson self-identifies as a progressive. A "dirty" word to some Democrats these days, he has proudly embraced the label and the ideology that comes with it.
However, one fails to see anything progressive in erasing historical figures from public places.
Washington clearly had his fair share of flaws, one of which was owning slaves.
There’s no debating that fact.
But he also risked his life and livelihood for our nation’s independence, as he would have been executed for treason had America lost its war against Great Britain.
Additionally, he dedicated the remainder of his life to making the nation he helped create a better place, always striving towards a more perfect union and willingly giving up power he could have easily maintained, given his popularity.
Instead of spending the limited resources at his disposal fighting for the removal of a statue of the man who secured our nation’s independence by defeating the world’s largest power at the time, Johnson should use that same energy to fight for safer neighborhoods, better schools, and an improved business climate for the city.
Such efforts will benefit the city tenfold more than any statue removal or replacement would.
Fortunately, Johnson seems to have discovered his misplaced priorities, as his administration recently announced it is abandoning all removal efforts.
It appears common sense isn’t entirely extinct in Chicago today, just hard to come by at city hall.
Jacob Lane is a Republican strategist and school choice activist. He has worked for GOP campaigns at the federal, state and local levels, as well as with various PACs and nonprofits. Read Jacob Lane's Reports — More Here.